Artist: Deicide
Album: Banished By Sin
Genre: Death Metal
Release Date: April 26, 2024
Metal bands will often walk a tightrope: uncommon enough is longevity, and relevance is something very few manage. And, as always, there’s the rarest of exceptions that prevail not just against time but over their genre.
Hailing from the bowels of Tampa, Florida, Deicide is an unabashedly blasphemous and regal death-metal unit that further solidifies that reputation with “Banished By Sin,” a maelstrom attack on the senses.
When the opening track is titled “From Unknown Heights You Shall Fall,” one pretty much has a good idea Deicide’s not about to be shy on this record. The track opens with the thunderous riffs and explosive drum work setting the tone for what’s to come, as Glen Benton’s trademark vocals slice through the chaos like a scythe through flesh. The track sinks its talons into the themes of religious corruption and ultimate downfall, both motifs continually stalking throughout the album.
The video for this song, “From Unknown Heights You Shall Fall,” is an extremely dark, graphic, and disturbing trip filled with suicides and journeys into the blackness. If anything, it’s a bold statement for Deicide, reminding that they’re not in fear of any of the darkest parts of human existence. Trigger Warning: Please be advised that the video includes depictions of suicide that may be disturbing for some audiences.
To that extent, further in the album, songs like “Doomed to Die” and “Sever the Tongue” have that dose of Deicide at its best. Showing that the band can knit complexity into brutality, relentless aggression meets halfway with unrelenting hostility to be stamped aside by melodic intricacies.
One of the rare outstanding tracks on the album is “Faithless,” a flaming attack against organized religion and blind faith. Its lyrics pull no punches—lines such as “I am salvation incarnate, my essence will fill the void” most forcefully drive the defiant message against religious oppression.
All throughout “Banished by Sin,” Deicide masterfully combines classic elements with a modern sensibility. Glen Benton is as fierce as ever on vocals, while Steve Asheim and Kevin Quirion display absolutely masterful guitar work. Adding Taylor Nordberg on guitar is what has given the band the depth, complexity, and strength that it needed.
Like the tracks on the album that follow, “A Trinity Of None” and “The Light Defeated,” it becomes very clear that Deicide is not one to rest on their laurels. “Banished By Sin” sets out their stall with this statement of intent, delivering a declaration to say that they’re here to challenge the faithful and reward the wicked.
“In this respect, ‘Banished By Sin’ is a triumphant return for Deicide that reinstates them to the league of one of the most important bands on the death metal scene. Full of relentless aggression, uncompromising attitude, and powerful lyrical themes, it’s an album demanding to be heard.”. Join them in their blasphemous crusade, and prepare to be cast away by sin.
