DECEPTION – Daenacteh

RELEASE YEAR: 2024

BAND URL: https://deceptionnorway.bandcamp.com/

A few reviews back, I had the pleasure to review the latest album from the Norwegian death metal stalwarts Blood Red Throne, Nonagon²⁰²⁴ as well as a chance to give my first 6/6 in a long time. Their new vocalist, Sindre Wathne Johnsen, is the founder of another Norwegian death metal outfit, Deception (founded in 2012 as Art Of Deception,) which moniker the band has chosen since 2019 after a reformation of their sound. Accordingly, their first two full lengths, Shattered Delusions²⁰¹⁶ and Path Of Trees²⁰¹⁸ (the latter reviewed by our J.N.) were released under the old name, Art Of Deception, but they debuted a new logo and name, Deception, with the transitionary Epidemic²⁰¹⁹ EP (well, the pandemic pathogen is called COVID-19 so what did they know we didn’t at the time?) The 3rd full length, The Mire²⁰²¹, which I reviewed, was a very good affair, the sound of which I described as “Vaderish Behemoth death metal bathed in Dimmu Borgian symphonics”, which actually turned out to be even truer on their 4th album, Daenacteh²⁰²⁴, released on March 22nd via Mighty Music, again, like it’s immediate predecessor, a very good affair, no less but also no more.

The Deception proper actually consists of two founders, Johnsen (lead guitars, vocals) and Marius Ofstad (2020-bass,) who switched from guitars and lead vocals in 2018, who are supported by the fresh blood of Einar Petersen (drums,) Vorbid bassist Hans Jakob Bjørheim (2018-guitars,) that Ofstad switch and the supply of that fresh blood likely the reasons for both changes in name and stylings. Despite Daenacteh²⁰²⁴ aforementioned similarity to The Mire²⁰²¹, we can speak of a natural progression, The Mire²⁰²¹ somewhat varied, giving away the symphonic death formula rightaway and then getting more melodeathly (even Hypocrisy-ical) toward the end, while Daenacteh²⁰²⁴ starting with a combination of both symphonic and melodic wings of the death metal formula, a formula, it must be said, but one which works more often than not, especially when it borrows from thrash (King Of Salvation, Monophobic) or, more palpably, Lamb Of God-ly groove, so much so as to merit an additional tag (Sulphur Clouds, King Of Salvation, Dhariyan, Daughters Of The Desert.) Comparisons could be made to Darkane’s underrated if stylistically odd Demonic Art²⁰⁰⁸ (which was unceremoniously unfairly and seemingly universally panned, so feel free to call me a contrarian,) a comparison not just in songwriting, changing pace, and hooks but also in unusual and inventive vocalizations. For instance, we can hear Johnsen go really high pitched clean to emphasize the chorus drama (Assailants, Dhariyan, Daughters Of The Desert,) either that or I mistook another instrument, possibly keyboards, for vocals. In any case, the effect adds variety and contributes to Deception’s uniqueness, although it also makes me think of Gojira’s From Mars To Sirius²⁰⁰⁵.

At first, it is hard to pick favorites, especially given the very short opening track, “Sulphur Clouds”, which quite suddenly melds with the following “King Of Salvation” in a manner not so dissimilar to Cradle Of Filth’s “Thirteen Autumns And A Widow” after “Once Upon Atrocity” (on Cruelty And The Beast¹⁹⁹⁸,) and heck, if we’re honest, we’ll find plenty of Cradle Of Filth in Deception’s stylings, something I’m quite confident they won’t even try to deny. But, after just two exposures, “King Of Salvation” is an obvious pick because of how perfectly it is composed and how catchy it is, while being the album’s only perfection. The slower Allegaeonic “Dhariyan” (where I’m sure that high pitched effect is an instrument and not a scream) and the closing very progressive and quite long (over 10 minutes) “Daughters Of The Desert” are fantastic and the three highlight the album’s strongest traits: songwriting, variety, invention, originality, hooks, the excellent and tight musicianship in cooperation among all four gentlemen, and the closer hearkens back to “Perennial Quest” and Symbolic¹⁹⁹⁵ and latter Death while possibly heralding a more progressive direction for the next album.

Although none of the tracks deserve less than 5/6, that is the final score because there are still moments where Deception could have used more variety, twists, turns, surprises and changes of pace and such, as on the blackened deathly “Iblis’ Mistress” which borrows from Between The Buried And Me’s bag of tricks but doesn’t quite pull it off, or the opener “Sulphur Clouds”, being so short and formulaic and overshadowed by by the flawless “King Of Salvation” I initially gave it a 4/6, or the comparatively short “Monophobic” which neither brings nothing new to the table nor takes away from it, or even “Assailants”, highly evocative of Detonation from the phenomenal Emmision Phase²⁰⁰⁷, doesn’t quite make everything work to its advantage as no doubt intended but which actually makes it easy to sum up Daenacteh²⁰²⁴ – we are overwhelmed by all these ideas that too often comprise very good but not great songs.