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Labyrinth is the third full-length record from Italian technical death metal wizards Fleshgod Apocalypse, who occupy one of the most interesting and frustrating creative positions imaginable: being constantly overshadowed by themselves.

Founded in 2007, their 2009 debut Oracles was a thunderous demonstration of technical prowess, as solid and intricate as a gothic cathedral, but also without pretension.


It was as dizzying as it was ecstatically fun, powerful and immersive with incredibly replay value and energy. It's a debut that, thus far, they have never been able to match and have consistently been critiqued against.

In 2011, the band released Agony, while a solid sophomore effort in many ways, was a marked departure from Oracles. Agony featured a move away from the technical and towards a more symphonic interpretation of death metal. While working with a full orchestra added bombast and grandiosity to their sound, and the record was well-written and exceptionally executed, it also belied some of what made Oracles something special. The exceptional guitar work was often overshadowed by the orchestral elements, and the technical dexterity did not have the same depth and joy.

Now, with Labyrinth, is seems that Fleshgod Apocalypse are trying to find a middle ground between their previous two efforts, to find a way to incorporate the theatrics of symphonic death metal while still creating sumptuous, deliciously sensual guitar work.

The shift in focus back to a guitar-driven sound is executed most beautifully on “Under the Black Sails” and “The Fall of Asterion.” Even when the orchestra is carrying most of the melody, the guitars take the harmony and weave something more nimble and dense, such as on “Elegy” and “Warpledge.”

What keeps Labyrinth from being exceptional is a combination of the production, and the way the record is written as a whole. In terms of sonic diversity, there is not much here. The record is intensely cohesive, songs bleeding into each other and hanging off of each other, seeming more like movements in a symphony than discrete musical pieces.

This is not necessarily a criticism on it's own, but when combined with the weirdly flat production, it adds to a sense of monotony. The record suffers from an insistence on keeping the orchestra and the guitars on equal footing, rather than allowing one or the other to take the lead as each song or part calls for. With everything kept rigidly at the same level, everything fades to grey rather than the radiant light and dark it should be.

Fleshgod Apocalypse have touched genius in the past, and with Labyrinth have moved closer to once again capturing that spark. They are constantly placed in the unfair position of being held to a n impossible standard, but happily that pressure seems to be pushing them to create better and better material. One day, perhaps that immense pressure will again squeeze out a diamond. Until then listeners will have to content themselves with the garnets and sapphires.

(released August 20, 2013 on Nuclear Blast Records)



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