Wretched-The exodus of autonomy

Victory
2009



I have come to expect a lot of metalcore fromVictory records, but North Carolina's Wretched are a death/thrash band which is both surprising and refreshing. Their style has a heavy influence from old style bands like Kreator, Possessed, Morbid Angel and others. They still manage to add enough of their own sound and some more recent death influences too. The approach is steady, but often boils up to a brutal level. The riffs often in a machine gun like attack with a choppy style that pushes ahead. The technical level is good for this style although they far more focused. Wretched possess a tightness that can be heard and felt in every level of their music. They are in complete command and drag us through valleys and over peaks while punishing us all the while with pounding layers of crushing sound. The tones are varied enough to be interesting and the pace is just astonishing because I felt like they were so relentless, but that certainly worked. They also kept the songs relatively brief. Really a fine job all the way around.