OK. So there has been a lot, and I do mean A LOT of talk regarding Chris Barnes’ vocals. Hey, I get it. Quite frankly he sounded terrible on the last two studio albums for Six Feet Under with Torment in 2017 and Nightmares of the Decomposed from 2020. I actually deleted them within ten minutes from my archives because my ears couldn’t take it.
But a funny thing happened with this latest effort Killing For Revenge. Barnes sounds great! Rejuvenated, if you will. I dunno if it’s the strength of the songs, working with guitarist Jack Owen again, or what have you. But whatever is happening, it works. Case in point? “Hostility Against Mankind” with its slow, sidewinder groove. This bleeds right into “Compulsive” which has all the subtlety of a chainsaw. And let’s not forget “Fit of Carnage”, an absolute rager and my personal favorite track. Hell, we open with a triumvirate of heavy in “Know-Nothing Ingrate”, “Accomplice to Evil Deeds”, and “Ascension” (another favorite!).
That’s not to say the album is flawless, quite the opposite. “Neanderthal ” is quite frankly a voyage to nowhere. It just plods along. However, “Judgement Day” is shot out of a cannon! At the end of the day Six Feet Under have delivered one helluva record for your headbanging pleasure this time around with Killing For Revenge. So I suggest you pick this one up, pour some shots and rawk out!!
Standout Tracks: “Judgement Day”, “Ascension”, “Fit of Carnage”.