Reanimaniacal Laughter: More Death/Thrash Greatness from Revocation
You know what a Revocation album sounds like by now. And that’s not a slight toward the band, nor is it an AC/DC, Motörhead, or Ramones “consistency is king” back-pat. Revocation’s brand of progressive death/thrash is very distinct, especially in the wake of rethrash and… whatever the hell else is going on in mainstream(ish) metal now. You know what to expect: spidery thrash riffs, impressive-but-tangible technicality, short bursts of fierce blastbeats, and David Davidson’s Drano-gargling shout and bonerworthy guitar work. Even with the massive expansions and surprises of Chaos of Forms, it was still a pretty recognizable Revocation album. Which is to say it kicked all sorts of ass, as did its predecessors. They’re not a band like Enslaved or Intronaut where you check in to see what they’re up to now; you grab new Revocation for more of something good. Which is great.
But even by that standard, there are moments on the band’s self-titled album (um… titled Revocation) where they, obviously quite confident in what they do, flirt with something different to sound like a bigger and better version of themselves. While I wouldn’t say it’s a definitive document of their craft like Tomb of the Mutilated, Reign in Blood, or Ilud Divinum Insanus, their typical dervish of nimble-fingered motherfuckery is augmented by bigger riffs and moments that resemble emotional depth. Nothing is that far outside the bounds of what Revocation do best, but instead hint that there’s a lot that can still be done within the bounds of what they do. The tweaks are pretty conservative (save for the banjo, but more on that later), and by doing that, Revocation sounds like a logical step forward for the band, which is to say, from our angle, they may as well be in the same place.
The record starts off similar to ‘09’s Existence is Futile, getting all the nose-down thrash out of the way early to save the wilder stuff for the album’s second half. Except Revocation break out as early as song 3 with “Archfiend”: its final third swings into a different key to do some proggy build-ups and genre-shifts, all coalescing into its stuttering rhythmic climax, a familiar kind of palm-muted riff that earns its place at the end of the song. Even as I type all that, it makes it sound like some sort of complex Yes-style song suite. But really, it’s by-the-numbers Revocation, packed in densely enough where you don’t notice the gears unless you’re look close. It just sounds good as is.
Some of the band’s strongest songs to date follow: the mid-paced sass of “Fracked,” the epic Big Metal riffs of “The Gift You Gave,” and the heavy-yet-airy chords that close out the album on “A Visitation.” Then there’s “Invidious,” The Song with the Banjo. Like with the bands previous flirtations with brass and ripping organ solos, it’s well-integrated into Revocation’s MO. But banjo’s different, as by its very nature, it’s technical and jittery, playing perfectly into the tech-thrash riffs that are inevitably piled on top. “Invidious” thrives well beyond the novelty: it packs a whole lot of familiar goodness into just under 4 ½ minutes, then proceeds to close out with the album’s heaviest riff (and perhaps the band’s heaviest riff so far). Revocation works just as well as any other Revocation album, but the isolated songs and the riffs and moments within them are ratcheted up just enough to hint at progression. They’re sneakily inching from being one of the most consistently great bands in metal to possibly being one of the best.
It’s obviously no secret that we here at Metal Sucks love Revocation. Hell, I’ve loved them since I saw them in ’09 (I’ve seen them since, and if you haven’t seen them live, what the fuck is wrong with you?) So you could argue that we’re only big on these guys because we were on to them before they started to blow up. But the fact is, if the band existed in a vacuum (or Eastern Europe, which is basically the same thing) and I stumbled onto them now, I’d be just as psyched. Revocation are one of the most aggressively likable bands in metal, where even their B-material is worth a few listens. Revocation, though the steps forward are modest, is a marked move toward what the future may hold for them. There may be no 5-star record coming down the pipe or a sharp left into mainstream songwriting (though it would be hilarious to see them try). But you can reliably hear any record by them and know that there will be something worthwhile on it. Revocation continues that trend ably.
Revocation’s self-titled album comes out August 6 on Relapse. Listen to the track “Invidious” here and order the album here.
