Having covered a plethora of styles during his solo career, Joe finally honed in on a self-made creation a while back, to great aplomb. Heading down a road built on death, black and industrial metal, the latest album 'Verum Loqui', steamrolls along this path brilliantly. This is progression as it should be, move forward without forsaking the foundation you built your music around, yet...you move!
Opener 'Sangre' is full force from the word go. No-nonsense going for the jugular, this is how I like my death metal spiced up with some room to breathe as a brilliant solo appears. 'Wurmwood' follows and it's even more brutal. Starts off kind of like Kreator with these intense interludes that brings paranoia supreme...only for the solo to offer tranquility before you're mangled to nothing but pulp. 'Hermetik' reduces the tempo but only somewhat. Joe goes for a more atmospheric yet crushing approach and this song is one of my favourites on 'Verum Loqui'. Different tempos enhances all the emotions pouring out of this one...only for the solo to push forth the paranoia and claustrophobia. A fantastic song! 'The Traveler' is a wonderful instrumental piece, more transcendent than the other tracks and perhaps a little bit more experimental. A wonderful solo in the latter half pushes the song even further....absolutely great! Closer 'Odium Reborn' is fucking old school death metal with a modern as hell sound and I love it. No beating around the bush, this is intense and brutal shit and you can't ask for more!
Joe amazes me with every release because there's no slowing down and there's no repeating even though he is moving down a more honed-in path. This is release number 14 since June 2018 and he is not repeating himself which is a huge benefactor in keeping your music interesting and vibrant. Can't wait to see what Joe has in store for us!
-Swedebeast
