Nexilva, a six-piece beast from Sunderland in North East England. They previously released a full length last year titled The Trials of Mankind which was a great first impression in my eyes but now they are back with Defile The Flesh Of Innocence. You can hear that Nexilva has progressed majorly in this seven tracks of technical brutality.
Defile The Flesh Of Innocence begins with the 'Intro' which sounds to be a sound track but is the perfect eerie beginning to the next heavy track which happens to be the self titled track. You hear the technicality instantly with fast paced guitars and face-melting drums. The vocals are in your face instantly. This track also wouldn't be complete without a bone-crushing breakdown and flawless solo work. The following track 'Decades of Suffering Pt. 1' which continues the onslaught of heavy darkness. Not one moment in this track are you focused on just one instrument let alone one part. With guitars each doing mind-bending riffs and the drums just doing light speed blasts at parts, its unbelievable. 'Shadows Rising' gives you a break from what sounds like the apocalypse approaching with what sounds like the calm before the real storm with a clean guitar part and rain and thunder in the back before going into what I thought was one of the most capturing riffs in the album. 'Enthrallment' plays after opening the storm gates again with vocalist's Gary King's bellowing lows and extreme highs and once again more technical and heavy floods. This track also has one the most spine-tingling breakdowns in it that just makes you want to break something. 'Decades of Suffering Pt. 2' picks up after and begins with guitar work that is out of this world followed by a breakdown that once again adds to the heaviness this band has taken by the throat. The last track 'Vendetta' features a special guest and one of my personal favorite bands, The Juliet Massacre. This track is probably the heaviest of all the songs because the drums are just unmatched to any other and the vocals have so many ranges with the help of The Juliet Massacre that you will think this is a deathcore mashup dream come true.
Once again, the vocals on this were provided by Gary King with the help on the last track by The Juliet Massacre. Gary's vocals were spot on at every part in every track. You really feel the power behind them through his lows that seem to come from the bowels of hell to his highs that are ear shattering. The guitar work is not your usual lineup but is brought together by three guitarist; Connor Jobes, Simon Atkinson, and Andy Mallaby. It's hard enough as one or two guitarists writing and recording and performing such technical music but they have managed to push the bar higher by working together as three. It has really paid off because you can really feel the solidity in sound with the wall that they have put up of mastery guitar excellence. Ryan Banks brings the bass tones into this which you can truly feel as if you are being possessed all through your body. Last but not least, Jon Simpson's drumming was both technical and on time. His blasts are just insane. At some parts in the songs like 'Decades of Suffering Pt. 1' for example, you would think that he's not real and that this is a computer but it's not, Jon has just mastered the art of technical brutality.
With the perfectly blended art of technical death metal and today's deathcore, Nexilva has gone far beyond the norm and brought this release to show the world that they are here to stay and anyone who gets in their way, I feel sorry for you.
MY VOTE:
5.0/5.0
