San Francisco based death metal outfit Vastum released their first demo Carnal Law earlier this year. In a matter of months, these guys were picked up by 20 Buck Spin, and Carnal Law was released as a full blown album. So, why the quick turn from unknown demo band to new band on a fairly respectable label? If you like old school death metal, one listen to Carnal Law should be all you need to answer that question.

Carnal Law is death metal in its simplest, most barbaric form; big punishing riffs that hit with a satisfying thud, with simple but effective lead guitar, and a top notch vocal performance. Vastum work mainly in slow to mid-tempos, isolating a good idea and pushing it as far as they possibly can before wearing it out. The band put their best foot forward, leading the album off with "Primal Seduction", a song that moves along with the unstoppable power of a tsunami, slowly but efficiently devastating everything in its path. "Devoid" and "Umbra Interna" highlight another interesting aspect of Vastum’s sound, both focusing on riffs that remind me of really slow and dirty thrash metal. I don’t think that thrash can actually be slow, but the distinctive choppy riffing of that genre can be slowed down and applied to death metal, which is essentially what is happening here. Carnal Law’s driving rhythms are punctuated by well-placed guitar solos, adding just enough finesse to the mix to keep things interesting. The blood red icing on this cake is the dual vocal attack. Lead vocalist D.B. uses a deep, traditional death metal style, and has a knack for working his vocals into all of the right places in the music. His vocals are paired with guitarist L.R.’s slightly higher and more drawn out gowl. This tandem is used to good effect throughout the album, with lots of vocal trade-offs, and a few random grunts and barks tossed in for good measure.

There isn’t really anything negative to say about Carnal Law. All six of the songs presented here are fine examples of the style, and are really memorable. If I were to nitpick, there might be a couple of spots where a riff starts to wear out its welcome. On "Re-Membered", the main riff is probably ridden just a hair too long. That riff is heavy as hell though, and it is hard to knock the band for overindulging a little bit. You might notice similar issues in a few other spots, but it never comes close to becoming an issue. At worst, it is too much of a good thing, and there is always a big pay off when Vastum finally do change it up.

Simple but ruthlessly effective, this is the kind of knuckle-dragging death metal that will appeal to fans of Autopsy, Asphyx and Obituary. Vastum bet almost all of their chips on the undeniable brute force and catchiness of their riffs, showing a great deal of confidence in their song-writing ability by avoiding the additional bells and whistles that can help carry a song. This gamble has clearly paid off, as many will probably rank Carnal Law among the year‘s finest death metal albums.

TRACK LISTING

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*Comments:

1.  Primal Seduction
2.  Re-Member
3.  Carnal Law
4.  Devoid
5.  Umbra Interna
6.  Spirit Abused

Total playing time:  33:45

Release Date:  May 31, 2011
Label: 20 Buck Spin

Vastum - Carnal Law

Reviewer: Garett

July 6, 2011