DEVASTATIÖN is a Black / Crust / Thrash band from Belgium and “Rise Of The Dead” is their third full length. From the get-go, the band is on top gear, they’re just pounding on your door, on your head and on your car bonnet. It is an all out assault with literally no downtime in their songs. Standard riffs that you’d expect out of a Black / Crust / Thrash band, nothing that will get you too excited, but engaging enough so you keep listening to the album. The vocals are certainly the highlight, they add in another layer to the entire sound. The rhythm section is where I have a problem, the entire album’s rhythm seems to have stemmed from a unidirectional view. Not to say that the musicians in DEVASTATIÖN are not at the top of their game, they absolutely are. I however, would’ve liked to see a good variation of their overall sound. The band could’ve easily capitalized on it. Track # 3 ‘Undead’ is a good example where the band approaches it with a different mentality, even though the approach from the musicianship stays the same. Expanding upon the prior generic statement, ‘Undead’ although falling into the carefully crafted framework of their sound, differs fundamentally in the way the riffs are structured whilst the vocals embrace those spaces in and around the riffs. The song simply sounds a lot more organized and feels like a few points south of what DEVASTATIÖN have done throughout the album. Track # 6, ‘Beyond The Arctic’ is where the band is literally at the height of delivery and I’ve to admit I quite like it. Structurally, this song leans into the traditional Black Metal approach, but very quickly falls into the spiral of the incessant rhythm. Regardless, I am sure DEVASTATIÖN will appeal to a good number of fans of the genre. I am, however, on the fence. For more information, please visit: www.facebook.com/devastation.be, www.facebook.com/empirerecordsbe