DE PROFUNDIS - The Emptiness Within

[lorenzo_kolony]

New review @ The Age of Metal webzine!

"Hailing from the UK, De Profundis are back again with their newest album called The Emptiness Within. In their humble beginnings they started off playing doom metal but over time they have moved forward into playing a type of melodic technical death metal. With this album De Profundis have created a solid album filled with many textures and very well executed instrumentals.

The album starts off From The Depths…, a one minute intro that is somewhat typical for any band these days trying to make it epic. After the intro comes the first real song Delirium. Delirium begins with an interesting melodic riff and continues it until a tremolo riff kicks in. At the 3 minute mark is where it gets interesting for the 7 minute song as much of the instrumentals get cut off in favour for an acoustic passage with a very groovy bass line. De Profundis shows off their instrumentals very well as it is standard when you play in the progressive style. One noticeable thing about De Profundis is their sound heralds back to the early 90s when Technical death metal was beginning to rise in bands like Cynic or Atheist. Instrumentally the guys are top-notch and especially the bass player with his fantastic bass lines recalling Tony Choy of Atheist fame at times really give De Profundis that extra edge that most extreme bands don’t have. Both of the guitarists play their instruments very well ranging from fast tremolo picking to heavy chugs to acoustic passages and are not afraid to give each other time to shine. Because of the nature of the music in De Profundis the drums have to be tight and on The Emptiness Within they shine very well to accommodate the bass and guitars. For their vocals they are well executed but nothing special from other growlers in the technical death metal style.

De Profundis’s The Emptiness Within is a well executed release and fans of Cynic and Atheist will definitely get a kick out of this album." [Elsthon]

Link:
http://theageofmetal.com/2013/04/de-profundis-the-emptiness-within-2013/

 

[lorenzo_kolony]

Review by Death Metal Underground webzine! Check it out!

"Every age has its conventions that set a target for those who aspire to success. When they achieve a fulfillment of those conventions, the aspirants have entered the elite and expect great reward to follow.

In our time, “progressive” rock has returned with a vengeance in the metal/hardcore world. It takes two types; the avant-garde type cycles between radically different riffs in an attempt to open the mind through contrast, while the jazz-type builds on a jam and then breaks it up with contrasting riffs to keep the jam going without becoming circular. De Profundis is of this second type.

What comes to mind when hearing this record is that Cynic and Atheist put their second and third albums into a room and nine months later, out popped De Profundis. This band mixes metal riffs of several different types with a cocktail jazz ambiance and plenty of delicious lead guitar, but builds up tension and release much like a hard rock band from the late 1980s.

The result is very easy to listen to. The jazz format is the most efficient for musicians, as it doesn’t require creation of custom song structures like other prog does, and it absorbs basically anything you can throw at it. De Profundis throw everything in there, from Satriani-esque quick pentatonic runs to dark minor key improvisation, and the result will enthrall people who like a high degree of internal contrast in their layered music.

Like dub or a really free-form jazz jam, De Profundis songs revolve around a central conflict that encounters interruptions which lead back to the theme. It’s the interruptions that are the main course, ironically enough, because these allow extended rhythm leads and leads that showcase the playing skills here.

It’s a slight to this band to call them “metal,” because it’s clearly only one of several dozen ingredients, but a wide diversity of metal riffing can be spotted here, from Swedish melodic to early black metal. All of this fits into a funky, warm, jazzy exterior that fulfills the expectations of its age’s elites." [Brett Stevens]

Link:
http://www.deathmetal.org/news/de-profundis-the-emptiness-within/

 

[lorenzo_kolony]

'The Emptiness Within' reviewed by Wickedchannel.com webzine!

"London, England’s progressive black/doom metal hybrid band De Profundis is back with their second full-length (and third overall) release “The Emptiness Within,” and their latest release seems to be their best effort to date. De Profundis has an odd approach to black metal where they stray from the traditional black metal roots and their progressive feel to it. The blastbeats are there along with the shrieking, powerful vocals, but the band adds many more melodic elements than your average black metal band.

After a brief (unnecessary) introduction to the album, De Profundis hits us with Delirium, which almost sums up the band entirely in one song. Delirium is multi-layered and powerful. The song hits melodic elements in the break as well as heavy moments throughout the majority of the song. Guitarists Roman Subbotin and Soikot Sengupta start something rather nice in Delirium which continues throughout the entire release. Lead solos are thought out and executed with precision and the rhythm guitar riffs are sharp as can be,

Another song that hits on every cylinder is The Wretched Plague. Once again, there are melodic elements that balance the song. There are even some more melodic vocals than in most of the other tracks. This is also the standout track for bass enthusiasts, as Arran McSporran’s work is on full display here. The Wretched Plague is on the heavier side of things as far as the riffs go though.

Overall, De Profundis continues where “A Bleak Reflection” and breaks new ground for the band, which I hope turns into a larger following. To date, I have yet to see De Profundis in person, but that will have to change when I get the opportunity." [Mike]

Link:
http://wickedchannel.com/2013/04/de-profundis-the-emptiness-within-2012-review/