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Criminal Element is formed in New York in 2001 under the leadership of singer Vince Matthew, a former member of Dying Fetus. So, the band sees a parade of prestigious performers, permanent or just guests, such as Terrance Hobbs, Frank Mullen or Joe Cincotta, from bands such as Suffocation or Catastrophic. When engineering Guilty as Charged in the year 2008, in addition to its core composed of Matthew, Boyer, Morris, Kloeppel & Jarvis, current or former members of Suffocation, Misery Index or Dying Fetus, the band brings in more guests such as Gallagher, Netherton & Voyles, including the full current line up Misery Index !
With such references, Criminal Element impresses for his first full lenght album, signing a deal with Sevared Records & Lacerated Enemy, respectively in the United States and Europe. Guilty as Charged exists in two versions, with two different kits, the european version of Lacerated Enemy includes two covers of Exciter & Carnivore as bonus, performed by Doug Bohn (ex-Suffocation) behind the drums.
Criminal Element practice a death metal nervous & protestor, tinged with hardcore, initiated by Napalm Death (Harmony period), Solstice (US) or Crusher, and brilliantly played by Dying Fetus & Misery Index few years later. The compositions of Matthew & Morris are very nervous, built around square & solid rhythmics of unstoppable duo Jarvis / Boyer, supporting the nervous riffs of Kloeppel & Morris, the fractious guttural of Matthew, and the furious backings of Gallagher / Netherton, as tracks Blood Money & Future Felon, which unconsciously trigger the pleasure associated with uncontrolled headbang.
In parallel, the strength of Guilty as Charged lies in its undeniable roots in a brutal death, releasing a series of complex and nuanced riffs, overlapping impeccably, like gusts unleashed on the excellent tracks Shots Fired, Habitual Offender or Suicide by Cop, conferring in these moments an Effigy of the Forgotten (Suffocation) root, particularly delicious.
Perfect compromise between the complexity of death metal and the brutal crushing of hardcore grind, fluid and brilliantly interpreted, Guilty as Charged undoubtedly delights lovers of the latest missiles of Dying Fetus & Misery Index, and Suffocation too. Not yet possess the charisma of the aforementioned bands, Criminal Element have an identity already heavily marked, and has in parallel unassailable mastery and technique, which hit him among the outsiders subject to a more promising future.
Fabien.
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