By now, most extreme metal fans will be aware of the historic importance of Paul Speckmann and Master and their early and long-underrated contributions to the death metal canon.
Three decades later, the group remain as idiosyncratic and apart from the rest of the scene as ever. Another musical mash-up, An Epiphany Of Hate brings together elements of punk/hardcore, thrash and death metal – with death metal just about remaining the defining ingredient, in part because of Speckmann’s distinctive vocal technique, which continues to carry its characteristically disgusted overtone.
That’s apt, of course, given his cynical and socially horrified lyrical approach – a trait more than evident in songs such as Subdue The Politician.
Just as there’s a lyrical continuity, so too is the music a natural follow-up to 2013’s The Witchhunt – and although the production has shifted from a raw and crisp sound to a warmer, more 70s-esque tone, this is business as usual with another collection of high energy and catchy songs.
