“Now,” starts the new Aborted EP, Termination Redux, “it is time to go back to where we came from.” An odd choice for a release that only features one cover of an old song attached onto the end, and consists otherwise of a few new tracks from the deathgrind masters of our day. But the next line kicks it back into a familiar territory with the continuting chant: “Hell is nothing. Hell is only a word. Reality is much, much worse.”
Truth be told, no matter how terrible reality is, we’ll always have the familiar chainsaw assault of Aborted to be the soundtrack to our violent id, the sweet lullabies of our shittiest days and a collective sonic outpouring of aggression courtesy of the four piece’s love of brutally fast, abominably heavy, and downright sinister songwriting across their entire discography. One of the main draws of Aborted has always been their familiarity and willingness to exist solely within the box of deathgrind, using solely the tools at their disposal there to craft a huge array of memorable songs and fantastic albums time and time again.
Termination Redux shows a band unequivocally locked into their positions and gunning for the gold with what are essentially three preview tracks for their full-length LP coming out later this year. That’s not to diminish the quality or significance of this EP, but merely to say that more than anything, this is nothing more than a taste of what is to come. And, rest assured, it’s a taste that any listener will be craving a hell of a lot more of come the 15th, when Termination drops. The guitarwork is as razor-sharp as always, courtesy of the dynamic duo of Mendel Bij de Leij and Danny Tunker (who, although present for the writing and recording process, is not still in the band at this point), who remain not only virtuosic players in their own right but also fantastic riff writers that can tangle with the best of the best, and Sven de Caluwe’s absolutely demonic vocal ability and powerful range supplement the already-strong instrumentals to create an experience that will leave anybody wanting more of the sheer ferocity that is to come from this year’s full length by the Belgian juggernauts.
Aborted has made a career out of their unwillingness to compromise or budge on their path to being the world’s premier deathgrind band, and, truth be told, they’ve made it to the top. Termination Redux is but a taste of the carnage to come later in the year, and if the full length can live up to the savagery contained in this EP, they won’t just be one of the best modern grindy death metal outfits, but one of the best metal bands today, full stop. Blast this to relieve some stress. You won’t regret a single second of it.
Aborted – Termination Redux gets…
