lista zespołów Melodic Death Detonation Reprisal

Detonation were at some time of their career the Dutch answer to Swedish Melodic Death Metal and after the release of two major albums in the field, Epic Defiance and Portals to Uphobia, most critics had put them on orbit alongside with Dark Tranquility and other icons of the genre. Except the Dutch never got the fame they deserved when compared to their Göteborg counterparts. It’s hard to tell if it was just them being from the wrong country or if it was being signed on Osmose Productions, a great label that shaped the scene of Extreme Metal but whose other signatures had very little in common with Melodeath in general and Detonation in particular.

At one point, lassitude probably set in and the band suffered from line-up remodeling and fours years between the release of their latest album Reprisal and Emission Phase. At this point, Detonation parted ways from the Osmose Productions roster and have released Reprisal on their own.

And what a paradoxical surprise it is. As the band left a label known for having released monsters of brutality such like Archgoat or Angelcorpse, they do deliver one hell of a album. The nice melodic curves of the past albums now give way to an added boost of aggression and violence and never have Detonation sounded so… brutal? Yes, indeed. Brutal. If you were now to compare Detonation with other acts, you’d probably skip the obvious allegiances to the Göteborg scene and look for more Technical Death Metal acts that still have a bit of melody in there such like Gorod or Anata.

The change will most likely unsettle fans of the first releases and give them the impression they may be dealing with an altogether new band but this should subside rather fast for the record is filled up with gems of songs. Quality is indeed here and as a self-release, it shows that the band did exactly what they had in mind having shed most of the codes of the Melodeath genre, sometimes too constraining. Rest assured though, Detonation haven’t turned into the new Diocletian or Origin and most of the guitars retain that melodic feel, be it in the soli except it’s cruder and harsher with hints of Thrash Metal showing here and there.

And guess what? The results are frankly quite good and I wouldn’t be surprised that even if their original fan-base might shrink a little due to the new orientation, they’d gain an accrued regain of interest from most other deathsters. And possibly interest from a label if that’s what they wish as well. While most bands seem to tone down as they grow old (did I mention Morbid Fucking Angel?), Detonation go exactly the opposite way and come back to us fiercer than they ever were. Reprisal is a great record. Get it!