DOCTRINE

The reformation of legendary Dutch death metal act Pestilence in 2008 was a bit controversial, to say the least. After going out with a "bang!" in the form of 1993's Spheres, the band's two full-length albums since the reformation have been met with generally mixed reception from fans and critics alike. Although 2011's Doctrine seems to be getting panned on most online sources, I'll put myself in the increasingly small minority that considers this to be a damn good effort that's among the year's better technical death metal albums. Doctrine is not flawless, and there are a few noticeable issues that keep this from reaching the heights of Pestilence's classic offerings, but this is still an exceptionally solid album that all fans of the band should cherish for years to come.

Anyone familiar with Pestilence's jazzy and progressive spin on technical death metal should instantly recognize Doctrine as the band's work. Doctrine does have a sleek, modern edge, but at its core this album is technical death metal in the vein of Death or Atheist with an additional jazzy edge. The fretless 7-string bass playing from Jeroen Paul Thesseling especially adds a jazzy touch that reminds me a lot of the bass playing on the legendary Spheres album. The rest of the musicians are also terrific, with Yuma Van Eekelen's fantastic drumming also standing out as something from a technically gifted machine. I've heard plenty of complaints about Patrick Mameli's vocal delivery, which (admittedly) is quite an acquired taste, but I absolutely adore his tortured growling style here. I'd say it's among his finest performances yet - the man simply sounds insane on this album, and quite original as well... I can't say I've heard very many death metal vocalists who sound anywhere near Mameli's unconventional sound on Doctrine! The production is a bit flat and generic in my opinion, but it still is unquestionably of high quality. I just can't say I'm a big fan of the mix, especially the super-crunchy guitar tones. Again, it's an acquired taste, and this one I haven't yet been able to acquire.

Despite the nearly universal slandering I've heard about Doctrine, it's turned out to be quite a pleasant surprise for me, and an album I'd easily recommend to those who enjoy jazz-tinged technical death metal. Pestilence may not have outdone their classic albums from the first half of the 90's, but that's certainly a large task and a nearly-unreasonable expectation. What they've managed to create here is yet another great addition into their catalog in the vein of Spheres - and that's certainly fine by me! Technical death metal fans are advised to get this one, assuming they've already heard a decent chunk of Pestilence's backcatalog. 3.5 stars are fair here.

"Doctrine" is the 6th full-length studio album by Dutch death metal act Pestilence. The album was released in April 2011 by Mascot Records. "Doctrine" is the 2nd full-length studio album released by Pestilence since their comeback after a 16 years recording break. The first album release after the comeback was "Resurrection Macabre (2009)". "Resurrection Macabre (2009)" saw Pestilence return to a more brutal death metal sound although the high technical level of playing from "Testimony of the Ancients (1991)" and the jazzy elements from "Spheres (1993)", are still present albeit in much smaller doses.

..."Doctrine" turns out to be a very different album compared to "Resurrection Macabre (2009)". After listening to only a few tracks it´s obvious that Pestilence have turned up the knob on the progressive/technical tendencies again. We´re presented with fiercely aggressive technical death metal with a lead vocalist in Patrick Mameli who delivers his most intense and caustic performance yet. The playing on the album are really strong too. New drummer Yuma Van Eekelen needs a special mention for his varied and skillfull playing but also the 7-string fretless bass playing by the returning Jeroen Paul Thesseling adds a lot to the soundscape. The jazzy guitar solos which were about the only progressive feature on "Resurrection Macabre (2009)", are also present on "Doctrine". This time they feel a bit more natural and they blend in well with the rest of the music. Probably because the rest of the music are generally more progressive too.

The quality of the tracks is high throughout but tracks like "Amgod", "Doctrine", "Deception" and "Sinister" are definitely among the highlights. The lyrics feature some pretty strong anti-religious themes. We´re not talking blasphemous/satanic lyrics but rather critical anti-religious lyrics. I think the lyrical themes work well together with the caustic vocal delivery and it´s one of the greatest assets on "Doctrine". Of course the well played and quite intricate heavy riffs are also one of the assets. There´s a definite Gorguts, ("Obscura (1998)"-era) influence in the most dissonant riffing on "Doctrine", but as always Pestilence sound like Pestilence. They are one of the few extreme metal acts that actually have a unique sound and although they´ve experimented and developed their core sound throughout the years (with varying degrees of success) all albums they´ve released unmistakably bear the distinct sound of Pestilence.

I enjoy just about every aspect of "Doctrine". The sound production is sharp and powerful, the musicianship is excellent and the songwriting clever yet packs the right amount of death metal punch. "Doctrine" would certainly have made a much more effective comeback album than the more mediocre "Resurrection Macabre (2009)", but better late than never. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

'Doctrine' - Pestilence (4/10)

Perhaps it is because I was first introduced to Pestilence through their most ambitious and excellent record 'Spheres', but everything I have heard from this Dutch death metal band since has underwhelmed and disappointed me. Ironically enough, 'Spheres' was also the album that effectively killed Pestilence for the better part of two decades; the fans generally disapproved of the more jazz-based direction they were headed in, and the commercial flop cost the band its livelihood. The band only recovered from their discouragement recently, releasing the comeback album 'Resurrection Macabre' in 2009. Sadly though, it sounds like the scars of 'Spheres' rejection are still bleeding. Even on Pestilence's latest record 'Doctrine', it is evident that the band has now cornered themselves in a fairly generic and tame death metal sound. Perhaps in an effort to appease their fans and prevent a repeat, Pestilence has become a band that is afraid to stand out.

Based on a somewhat long-winded intro track of a man chanting in Latin, the artwork and album's title, one might get the implication that this is some sort of concept piece about Christianity. Mind you, even that might be reading into what 'Doctrine' has to offer a little too much. Barring the unnecessary dialogue piece, each of these tracks is a self-contained expression of mediocrity. Of the ten death metal tracks here, there is not one that stands out. Pestilence are reborn as a bland technical death metal act, although many of the guitar riffs here lack complexity. The guitar parts are rarely melodic, yet too predictable and cold to be considered heavy or exciting. At moments where there is a clear opportunity for Pestilence to do something really great, they shirk back and go for something expected, another few measures of chugging riffs, perhaps? To band mastermind Patrick Mameli's credit though, his guitar solos sound fantastic, essentially playing jazz in a metal setting. This slight fusion is only evident in the all-too scarce leads on 'Doctrine' though. The rest only seeks to underwhelm.

The vocals of Mameli have not necessarily deteriorated all that much from the band's heyday, but there is far too much of a focus on his growls here. Besides that they are mixed too highly, the guitars seem to roast on the backburner quite a bit of the time while the Schuldiner-esque vocals rasp away. The problem here is that it leads to much of the album's instrumentation building around vocals and providing 'back up', rather than grabbing hold of the reins and consistently impressing me from a technical level. The young blood drummer Yuma Van Eekelen performs very well though, pummeling away at the kit and giving a nice fire under the stale casserolle that Pestilence has become.

2011 certainly has not been the proudest year for death metal, and its sorry to see a band that was once so great, become so frightened to do anything new. The same fans who rejected Pestilence's progressive inclinations will probably find themselves pleased with 'Doctrine', but the new material of this band is unnecessary by any other means. 'Doctrine' has not been the biggest disappointment of its genre this year- after all, who can forget about that tragic Morbid Angel album- but there needs to be the will to do something new in this band before I can find myself interested in anything new they do.