Well this is a slightly odd one, a band named after someone who does not actually play on it but simply provides “concepts and direction!” Call me old fashioned but personally I do find that a little on the narcissistic side but there you go. Nader Sadek is an Egyptian born designer and ‘metal artist,’ he formed some notoriety by designing Mayhem’s stage sets on their US tour and describes this album as “a monstrous machine of an art piece that I believe will shock the senses and open people’s minds.” Again I have to raise cynical eyebrows and mention pretentiousness but this comes from someone who thinks the likes of Damien Hurst and Tracey Emin are so far up their own arses and awards like The Turner Prize are a load of old cobblers, so what do I know. Luckily helping him out on this album Nader has drafted in some influential friends who do actually do something tangible to contribute.
Put together Steve Tucker (vocals), Rune Eriksen (guitars) and Flo Mounier drums and it is hardly surprising that the end result is summed up by the label (perfectly) as akin to a cross between ‘Domination’ and ‘Ordo Ab Chao’. Other guests are also present including Attila Csihar whose eerie croaks are instantly noticeable on short opener ‘Awakening,’ Travis Ryan (Cattle Decapitation), Tony Norman (Monstrosity), Descructhor (Morbid Angel), and Nick McMaster (Krallice). The concept behind ‘In The Flesh’ “centres on petroleum's sinister insinuation into our everyday lives” and to be fair to Nader I’m sure the finished product combined with video works and original drawings gives more of an insight into the artist’s direction. The music itself (unsurprisingly considering the talents involved) is pretty damn impressive in its own right too.
As we are plunged into ‘Petrophilia’ the ice cold guitar assault and battering drums make it evident that this is as violent as anything you will see on Mad Max 2. The guttural roar of Steve Tucker hones in and the instrumentation flurries into an abyss of scathing hate fuelled aggression. It’s incredibly provocative stuff and you can really notice those shivering ‘Ordo Ab Chao’ guitar tones bristling through things, giving Rune the chance to drop back into former territory that he no doubt misses having moved to the sunnier climate of Ave Inferi. A splash of what sounds like oboe breathes life into ‘Of This Flesh (Novus Deus)’ and despite the speed of the drum delivery this is a more mid paced assault that judders away allowing the vocals to rise amidst a demonic sounding choral accompanying backdrop. The clanking of machinery and echoing guitars are all that meld together the brief interlude of ‘Exhaust Capacitor’ before the most morbid assault of ‘Soulless’ takes us back to that time that slime lived and slithered. Another bridge is crossed with a touch more Attila ghastliness before ‘Mechanic Idolatry’ swaggers out with more punishing vocals angrily commanding and reminding of The Humungus in that aforementioned movie! ‘Sulffer’ leads directly in adding some great guitar spiralling to its hefty bombast and then after a final brooding instrumental we are done just 29 minutes after the album started.
If you like Morbid Angel you will love this, I can see no reason why you wouldn’t at all, the blackened nuances add to the dynamic and give it all a cold shroud taking this away from any pigeonholed standard Floridian DM sound. It is a bit on the short side but the compact running time works in its favour for me. The one question is what do you do with it now, serve it up live in a venue or in an art gallery with cheese and wine? Watch this space, stranger things have happened!
http://nadersadek.com
