Once again the phrase "better late than never" applies to this review as well.
I will say I am a new fan to Six Feet Under. I had not listened to them a whole lot before I saw them on Summer Slaughter in 2011. Their aggressive live show got me hooked, not to mention I almost broke my neck when they played their version of "Hammer Smash Face" so when they released Undead I went out and bought it. Undead in all respects was a decent album. Lead singer Chris Barnes' voice created the perfect haunting atmosphere to accompany the infectious death metal that Six Feet Under cranked out. But when I saw on twitter that the group was working on a new album my ears perked up.
On rare occasions do I see artists release albums in back to back years. I know Korpiklaani did it last year with Manala, but other than that most artists will release an album every two years. I think the biggest risk with releasing albums in back to back years is will the new album be as good as the one that came before it, or will the album feel rushed and therefore the product will not be as good?
Barnes insured all of his twitter followers that this album would be #Betterthanundead and when the first single "Zombie Blood Curse" was released, it seemed that the new material was living up to Barnes' prediction. "Zombie Blood Curse" is faster than some of Six Feet Under's more recent songs, but that doesn't make it any less haunting or brutal. The opening riff is as heavy as it is catchy and will immediately have any listener headbanging along as Barnes takes you on a journey through his sick and twisted mind. The song does have a slower section in the middle that is signature to the Six Feet Under sound but the song picks right up again.
Unborn starts with the song "Neuro Osmosis" where the listener is lured in by a haunting guitar line, which crescendo's until Barnes leaps from his black abyss and drags you down to the depths of hell. The song is classic Six Feet Under, its slow, groovy, and as on Undead, Barnes' voice fits the atmosphere of the song perfectly. But the journey through this dark world has only just begun.
From there the album thunders along, as Barnes leads you through his world of dark fantasy. All the songs on Unborn have an unmistakable groove. Its a groove that is very catchy and easy to headbang along to. The songs are all about mid tempo, which is good for the listener as their necks will be able to last them the whole album.
As for Barnes' vocal performance, he has never sounded better. I know his vocal style is not as digestible as some other death metal vocalists. But on Unborn Barnes has managed to walk the line between how brutal his voice sounds and how easy it is to understand his lyrics with great ease. Out of all the Six Feet Under I have listened to, Unborn is definitely the easiest to understand him on.
Overall, Barnes was right when he said that Unborn would be better than Undead. The songs sound bigger and more intense with out loosing the sound that made Six Feet Under unique in the death metal scene and Barnes' vocals may be easier to understand, but they are just as dark and haunting as ever. Unborn will please all death metal fans and if you are a death metal fan who is new to Six Feet Under start with Unborn, it is Six Feet Under at their finest.
Overall Rating: 8/10
Thanks guys!
-Zach
Remember if there is an album you want me to review or an artist you want me to talk about, leave a comment below or tweet me @zachktheanimal
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