Orbit Culture – Death Above Life Album Review

At this point, calling Orbit Culture the new gods of metal doesn’t feel bold. It feels accurate. After listening to Death Above Life in its entirety for the past few weeks, I don’t believe this is a stretch. Once again, this foursome from Sweden have released an album that sets the bar for the melodic / groove death genre.

The themes on this album sound influenced by personal experiences. Less mythology and monsters. More shedding of past issues, a shedding of their skin, or rebirth so to speak. There was talk of this being a new start or direction for the band, but I’m only hearing it in the themes covered, definitely not in the music. For fans of Orbit Culture, this is surely not a change in direction. Nikolas’ vocals are as heavy as ever, possibly with stronger cleans on this album. The riffs are heavy as fuck. Drumming still kicks you in the nether regions, then the face, and back again.

The album has so many high points that I can’t even start to dive into all of the best moments, at least not without writing a 2,000-word review, and nobody wants that. I will say that the top tracks for me are “Bloodhound,” “The Tales of War,” and the title track. This isn’t to say the others are skip tracks. Listening to this album start to finish takes no effort. Even the slower tracks have a weight to them that you’ll feel in your soul.

Bloodhound opens with a machine-gun beat behind a simple but complex riff. Another Orbit Culture trademark. The groove of the chorus had this track on repeat for an entire morning. The Tales of War is the perfect wall-of-death song. If you’re not nodding along or thrashing in a solo pit in your office when playing this track, you might need to call 911, ’cause you’re most likely dead. Death Above Life is the crushing, atmospheric, deep, chunky riffage that Orbit Culture has the innate ability to generate with ease. I’m sure it’s not easy coming up with their sound, but they sure make it feel that way.

From start to finish, Orbit Culture have once again given us an album that shows why so many people, myself included, feel this band is on their journey to being the next 50-year metal act. No signs of letting up, slowing down, or producing anything less than perfection on Death Above Life. This album will be in constant rotation, alongside all of their previous albums, for years to come.