When Death Angel decided to disband following their seminal Act III, all I could wonder was WHY?!?! I couldn’t believe that a band that had released three such terrific albums were now lost to us all.
Flash forward to 2004, and I am informed by a fanatical friend that the band has returned, and they have a new album out – The Art Of Dying. He brings it over and we put it on – very, very loud.
What I couldn’t believe is that they had returned louder, heavier and even more encapsulating than they had been back in the late eighties. Vocally, Mark Osegueda is just superb, brining a harder and more mature edge to his singing. The guitaring of Rob Cavestany and new recruit Ted Aguilar is also just awesome, and all the time pumped along by the rhythm section.
To listen to Act III and The Art Of Dying back to back is amazing. Two great albums, separated by 14 years, differing from each other and yet so similar.
This album is a triumphant return for a band that I thought we had seen the last of. With any luck, the best is still yet to come.
Favourites for me here include “Thrown To The Wolves”, “5 Steps Of Freedom”, “Thicker Than Blood” and “Prophecy”.
Rating: One of the best finds of the mid-2000’s for me. 4.5 / 5.
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