It has become so commonplace as to be clichéd for death metal bands and labels to claim that their music, though immersed in old-school traditions, nevertheless brings something new to the table — and it rarely proves to be true. Much of the time, the alleged up-dating consists of little more than more modern production techniques, which sometimes only succeeds in robbing the music of the rough and raw power it once had. And particularly in the case of old school Swedish death metal, there’s not much you can do to vary the sound without breaking the chain that links the music to its origins.

The Swedish band Wretched Fate, on the other hand, really have found a sweet spot, indulging a genuine passion for death metal of the past, but in a way that doesn’t sound formulaic. They’ve undeniably caught the sound and spirit of the giants on whose shoulders they stand, but have injected their songs with a fieriness and flair that we rarely encounter in the music of groups whose inspirations are so firmly rooted in an era that’s now nearly three decades old. Continue reading »