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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
the first steps taken..., July 21, 2000
Poland death metal experts Vader, release their auspicious debut cd. A mix of various bands' styles, most notably Morbid Angel, Vader practically reduce your audio system to a pile of dust with a vicious, barbaric and unrelenting aural assault. Swirling, million mile an hour riffs, insane vocal howling and my God, enough double bass drum pounding to cause an earthquake of biblical proportions. These guys are just the perfect antidote for that neighbor you dislike. :)Being a debut record, Vader do fall into many traps; songs that are just faceless and have no identity ("Testimony" "Demons Wind"), a production that is just a bit too polished for death metal, and having their influences come across a little too apparent (Vader are obviously card carrying members of Morbid Angel's fan club). And how many "winds of hell, the coming of doom" intros can you stand? If your answer is "there are never enough intros!", then add another intro to your collection. With that said though, Vader's "Ultimate Incantation" is an effectively formidible death metal disc, and a band with obvious talent and above average musical skills. "Reign Carrion", for my money, is the best track on the disc, serving up equal helpings of doom, thrash and death with plenty of identity and intricate moments. "Breath of Centuries" and the crushing "Final Massacre" are also stand outs. Vader's follow up releases (the brutally ingenious "De Profundis", the hard to find, incredibly awesome mini cd "Sothis", the slightly disappointing, but still good "Black To The Blind" and the just released "Litany") have cemented their postion as one of Death Metal's premier band and are MANDATORY purchases for the dedicated fan. Their debut cd, while not perfect, shows the band in its formidable growth stages and is a worthy purchase for any rabid death metaller. 3 and a half stars is a better indicator.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
a good start...., August 7, 2000
Poland export and death/thrash masters, Vader, come up (for the most part) aces on this their debut disc. If you are a death metal fan, then this review may seem trivial as this cd was released in late '92/early '93 I believe, but for those who have not been aquainted with the vicious deathersters, then read on.Vader pretty much stick to the tried and true death metal formula; insane death vocals (NOT like Cannibal Corpse or Suffocation, but more in the Napalm Death/Morbid Angel vein), whirlwind, totally blistering riffing and absolutely murderous drumming, particularly the vicious double bass drum pounding; enough so to cause an earthquake of biblical proportions. The disc also has a clear, loud production...maybe a little TOO clear, as the riffs are a bit too polished for my tastes. As far as musical style goes, Vader are obviously big fans of Morbid Angel, as some the Morbid Ones influence can be heard clearly throughout the disc, and the fact that some of the songs rely too much on the speed factor and kind of go by without any real effect. That said though, "Reign Carrion" "Final Massacre" and "Vicious Circle" do enough damage and are memorable enough to give Vader their due as a force to be reckoned with. The later work, the brutally ingenious "De Profundis", the awesome and total whirlwind mini-cd "Sothis", the slighty disappointing, but still good "Black to the Blind" and their latest "litany", all have shown the growth and maturity that Vader have displayed on their debut, so if you haven't gotten "The Ultimate Incantation" yet, it's high time that you did.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent debut & their best effort to date, February 10, 2007
I have only heard 3 of Vade's albums, and this one is without a doubt the best of the 3. It is also the first one I heard. The other 2 I heard are The Beast and De Profundis. The Beast sounds a bit like Morbid Angel on their Domination album only faster. But The Ultimate Incantation is definetely Pure Vader. I think that most bands only make one album that is really really good, and they either do it with their debut or some time down the track when they gain experience, but Vader had all the experience when they released their debut, and they had more energy and imagination aswell. This is one of those classic death metal albums that you have to have in your collection if you're a fan of 90's death metal that is. Most of the death metal released in the 90's was superb, but there was probably only one album from each band that stood out for particular listeners. I have always liked a band's debut more than later efforts except for a few bands that actually got better with time like Sinister with their Hate album which is in my opinion their best release and Morbid Angel's Domination, but then Morbid Angel also did very well on their debut Alters Of Madness aswell, though they grew into a larger beast later with Domination. It's just like how Metallica's debut Kill Em All is their most liked, but so is the black album, but I also like Ride The Lightning aswell, maybe even more. It's just personal taste really. But it does also have a lot to do with how much effort was put into the album, and Vader's The Ultimate Incantation seems to me that Vader put a lot more effort and energy into than the the other 3 albums I've heard. I suspect that they have not and will not ever release a cd as powerful, as imaginative, as atmospheric or as epic as The Ultimate Incantation.
The production is typically early 90's with a low treble sound and much of that blocked sound that sounds like you're listening to it from inside a closed box while the stereo is outside the box. Well, I happen to like this sound very much and admire all early 90's death metal that have this sound incorporated into their production. Some bands had too much treble, but that is the other side of the scale. Really when it comes down to the core it doesn't really matter about production as much as the skill of the band, and Vader have the skills to make some of the most exhilerating death metal ever produced.
When I listen to this album I feel like I'm being taken on a journey much like a movie. I can't explain in words what the journey looks like in my head, but it is like the ultimate movie that can change with every listen but also comes back to the original feelings I get when I listen to it.
Every track on this album is 5 stars. I never skip a track, especially because skipping tracks in this album defeats the purpose of the story telling, it's like an epic tale being told and you must not miss out on a chapter or the rest will not make as much sence.
This is one of the deepest and most image provoking albums of all time. Get it, and then prepare to journey through Vader's astonishing worlds of chaos, reincarnation, sorcery, death, a state of mind unimagined.
This is the only album that has the power to take your mind and thoughts to another world that is like the hell that we death metal fans dream of as our home.
If you don't have this cd and you are a death metal fan, I feel sorry for you, because you my friend are missing out on The Ultimate Incantation.
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