[THE
PICK-UP]
I first met
Deserter in Spring 2015 during a punk and metal crossover festival in Aalst
called Öiljst Öntplöft. I remember being very pleased with their performance.
Now, two years later, the band has released a new album and it’s about time
that I shred this snake’s skin because I really need some new shoes!
[THE
SHREDDING BASICS]
Distributed
by Vile Records, Coils of the Lesser Serpent is Deserter’s second full release and
succeeds their 2012 debut album Chernobyl’s Beauty. I also own Chernobyl’s
Beauty but the less we talk about that piece of bootlegged crap the better.
This time, the guys of Deserter had the time and resources to crank out an
album worthy of being called a debut release. The band’s overall style combines
the frantic pace from acts like Exodus with riffs similar to bands like Death.
One unique thing about Deserter are the vocals. Unlike the aforementioned
artists where Deserter clearly takes inspiration from, Yacine goes all black
metal on your ass! He yells and shrieks his way through the album. Say what you
will about black metal and its vocal style, but I dig the subgenre and I
believe this sort of “singing” adds to the raw atmosphere of Coils of the
Lesser Serpent. The album isn’t very long and moves at a fast pace, barely
leaving you time to breathe during its 30 minute frenzy of epic guitar solos
and mosh inducing drum beats. Overall, what you get here is a nice package of thrashing
black death!
[THE PARK
OF THEMES]
Warfare and
political hypocrisy are the main themes discussed in this album. It’s the
typical thrash metal topics criticizing the atrocities of modern day life. I
don’t think there’s much more I can tell about Coils Of The Lesser Serpent’s
themes. Moving on…
[THE VISION
OF DEVASTATION]
On the
front cover a pair of snakes give our planet a good, warm hug. Maybe this image
is a visual metaphor about how governments seemingly hold the entire planet
into their grasp using the fear-inducing media and waging war in other
countries. The artwork has a soft, hand colored look and it looks great.
Another upgrade from the band’s previous release. You know, the more I look at
that cover art the more I start thinking about the poster of the infamous action
thriller Snakes on a Plane starring Samuel L. Jackson. Damn, I’ve had it with
these muthafucking snakes on this muthafucking planet!
[THE
SHARPEST SHREDS]
Without a
doubt Bombing Flight. The song starts off strong with a badass guitar riff and
then pounds its way into your eardrums with a frenzy of guitar riffs and
ferocious vocals, nicely showcasing Deserter’s strengths. A great introduction
to the band’s experimental cocktail of thrash, black and death metal. Too bad
it isn’t Coils Of The Lesser Serpent’s actual opening tune. More on that right
now…
[THE
BLUNTEST BLADES]
The album’s
second track, Urban Gehenna, was an unnecessary track in my opinion. This
instrumental track is put right after the opening track, which is also an
instrumental, but it doesn’t provide any further warming up for the meat of the
album. I wished songs like Head Hunter or the aforementioned Bombing Flight had
the second spot on the album. Those are two songs that really put the album
into high gear! Still, Urban Gehenna does have a few nice guitar solos so the
track isn’t all filler.
[THE SHREDDER’S SCORECARD]
7 serpent
coils out of 10. While Coils of the Lesser Serpent isn’t Deserter’s official debut
album, it certainly deserves that title. With better, more technical sound
writing, more appealing artwork and, let’s not forget, a huge improvement in
production values, Deserter has managed to put the power and energy they give
off during their live shows into a well-made album. With Coils Of The Lesser
Serpent, Deserter show that they’re a band with great potential. I look forward
to the band’s future releases, but first, I really need to see them play live
again. It’s been so long and I’ve got a name to shred off my list!
[NOW BANG
ALONG]
Unfortunately, I couldn't find the album's single Carnal Carnival on YouTube. However, you can listen to the track on Spotify using this link:
https://open.spotify.com/album/6p4jQwBL49xh0YN3Vz1hXL?play=true&utm_source=open.spotify.com&utm_medi...
