Although Alluvial’s debut album, 2017’s ‘The Deep Longing For Annihilation’, was an instrumental affair, the plan was always to have a singer but they were just unable to find the right one. That was corrected in time for this release with the addition of Kevin Muller (ex-Suffocation, The Merciless Concept) to the ranks of guitarist Wes Hauch (ex-The Faceless, Black Crown Initiate), bassist Tim Walker (Entheos) and drummer Matt Paulazzo (Aegaeon). The result is a technical death album which also have some incredibly commercial riffs and hooks within it, and while I am sure those not into the scene will say that yet again this is “just a noise”, for those of us who understand there is a great deal going on here.

They mix tempos, and there is a great deal of contrast within the attack which means they give room for dynamics which means that when they return, they hit even harder. They also have not overdone the overdubs so when Wes is soloing on “Ulysses” there is no underlying guitar which provides space and allows it to shine. Near the end of the album, we also get a delicate guitar instrumental, “Sugar Paper”, which shows a totally different style of music from Wes which allows the band to become far more atmospheric. It is hard to believe this is only their second album and their first with a singer as this is incredibly polished. Although the album was never designed to be a concept, it was only that at the end of the recording they realised that each song on the record was about the different perils that happen at the hand of one man to another, which is when they came up with the title. The name ‘Alluvial’ may be new to many, but this is well worth investigation by anyone who really enjoys their metal to be complex yet inviting at the same time.

Rating: 8/10

Links:
https://www.alluvialofficial.com/
https://www.nuclearblast.com/uk/