Corpsessed - Succumb to Rot

Odes to degradation.

(Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on April 30th 2022) 

If there’s one thing I cannot give enough praise to the Finnish for, it’s the quality of their extreme metal exports, in particular death metal. The exploits of the short lived Finnish scene of the 90s have been well documented over the past few years, providing us with a comprehensive view of what was happening at the time. Thankfully though, the country has come back with a vengeance in the 2010s, with many excellent bands coming out of there. Among them is Corpsessed, who very recently released their third full-length, and the topic of today’s review, Succumb to Rot. It’s a quality release that helps further cement Finland as one of the greatest exporters of death metal, and for good reason.
Sonically, this album marks a slight change of direction for Corpsessed, with the band approaching their songwriting in a different way compared to their sophomore, Impetus of Death. Succumb to Rot is primarily focused on the slower and mid-tempo aspects of death metal, with a lot of songs featuring oppressively heavy and trudging riffs, with the faster ones still being present, but not taking centre stage. This particular change can be mostly noticed on tracks like “Spiritual Malevolence” and “Pneuma Akatharton”, which feature some crushing grooves, with the former of the two in particular featuring one of the album’s best moments around the 3 minute mark. While a lot of bands that lean harder into the doomy aspects of caverndeath tend to be short in memorability, Corpsessed manages to craft some exceptionally memorable songs, such as on “Death-Stench Effluvium”, its searing leadwork leaving scarcely any breathing room for the listener.
Seeing as this is a death metal release though, the band hasn’t forgotten that they have to kick it into high gear and deliver some absolute barn burners. “Relentless Entropy” lives up to its name, being a relentless salvo of high-intensity riffs that flawlessly alternate between tempos, with “Calling Void” following suit, a double-bass driven rager that goes for the throat right off the bat. Speaking of double-bass, Jussi-Pekka Manner delivers an amazing performance behind the kit, filled with brisk footwork and excellent cymbal play that helps add another dimension to the songs presented here.
Another excellent aspect of this album is the production, a perfect fit for Corpsessed’s new-ish direction. It’s very earthy and powerful, with the muscular guitars being up-front, yet without overwhelming the rest of the instruments, which are just as important. The roaring bass in particular is one of my favourite aspects of Succumb to Rot’s sonic aesthetics, adding a near-impenetrable layer of grime to the music, and its presence can be felt at all times. As for the drums, they’re quite robust, creating a very solid foundation that is enhanced by the rest of the band. The mixing is also top notch. All the instruments are perfectly discernible and it never turns into an incoherent wall of sound, even during the faster segments.
I really don’t have much to complain about here. Sure, it doesn’t do anything that’s particularly outside the box, and part of me wishes there were more fast parts, but it’s still so well-crafted that I can’t be mad at it. Besides, sometimes all a band has to do with a release is fill the box perfectly, not necessarily break out of it. Succumb to Rot is one of this year’s most crushing releases so far, and it proves that Corpsessed is worthy of spearheading Finland’s modern metal wave alongside bands like Krypts. Definitely listen to this if you are in the mood to feel like you’re buried in the bowels of the earth.
Highlights: Death-Stench Effluvium, Spiritual Malevolence, Pneuma Akatharton

Rating: 95%  

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