One Listen Review
1st Listen – 11 July 2023
Reviewed – 11 July 2023
Djinn-Ghül – Opulence
Vicious Instinct Records
Released 14 July 2023
Djinn-Ghül are about to release their 3rd full length album unto the world. Opulence is a seriously heavy slab of what can only be described as ‘industrialised brutal death metal’. Think Fear Factory, old Fear Factory – not the modern sham, but with far heavier, death metal riffs and a twin throat shredding vocal attack. Then you will be half way to what Djinn-Ghül sound like.
Despite the 9 tracks, the running time of the album is under 29 minutes in length. This is an important fact we will come to later. Opulence begins with percussive ‘industry’ noises, a la the aforementioned Fear Factory, and it is a full 2 minutes in before the chaos starts. Frenzied blast-beats are accompanied by down-tuned guitars and the twin vocals of band members Grant Nachbur and Junior Patiño. It is a crushing opening track that sets the tone for a truly unrelenting album.
Special mention must go to the vocals. They really are quite spectacular, with a deep growled dirty vocal wonderfully complimented by a higher register of growled dirty vocals, and when they combine, it is akin to
a death metal version of 2 opera singers singing in harmony. It is, by a long way, the best part of Opulence.
The issue I have with the album is the lack of versatility. Each unrelentingly heavy song melds into the next, so much so that I actually missed a track when I was writing my notes for the review. Yes, some of the songs have their quieter moments, giving off a semblance of respite, but it isn’t enough. By far the biggest disappointment for me was that, even though it is less than half an hour long, I found myself getting bored and felt that Opulence lasted far longer than it actually did.
To be fair, Brutal Death Metal is a genre where a lack of variation is the norm, where tracks are designed to pulverize the listener into a devastating defeat and so there is no doubt in my mind that this album will appeal to fans of the genre who will not be shy in telling me I am wrong. However, this review is based on the likelihood of a repeat listen, and despite it being a technically proficient, extremely heavy album with superb vocals, I will be unlikely to listen to this album again for a while.
Bandcamp: https://djinnghulofficial.bandcamp.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DjinnGhul
The DevilsHorns 
Leave a comment