You know, in this day and age, you have to give a tip of the hat to those of our Metal brethren who persevere and keep chugging along. Despite the ever-shifting tastes in the world of Heavy Metal, and with new genres and bands popping up on every corner, it can be a daunting task. Just to maintain a band in itself and with ever-fluctuating membership, respect has to be given and a glass raised. It was with this sentiment that I came into this project, and initially thought it was a re-master or compilation of sorts. Now, for some reason, I latched on to the title of this release, thinking it had a deeper meaning, and maybe it does, but what we have here is a completely new effort from the band. As mentioned, regarding longevity, they have been in existence since 1993, and, granted that only one original member remains, it still gives one pause. Gone are the days of being a second tier version of DYING FETUS and SUFFOCATION, but now coming across heavily (to my ears at least) of MERCYLESS, especially from that band’s latest endeavors. Also, other touchstones are MONSTROSITY, SINISTER and even a bit of their fellow countrymen, FLESHCRAWL. Now we are given a much more modern version of Death Metal, with a heavy nod to the Floridian side of things, both in songwriting and in production. It can be expected that with the influx of a newer generation stepping into a band, the members will give their own personal touch. Plopping this into your CD player and pressing play, you can hear the difference immediately. Now it’s nowhere near groundbreaking by any means, because I’ve been aware of the band since its inception and own 2006’s “Endless Sea Of Loss”, but I do remember thinking their sound was a tad bit too derivative, and now call me oversensitive, but also a lil tired of their porn leanings being introduced in titles or in soundbites across various releases. Now it can be said that they have just picked a new influence sound-wise, and that may be the case, but also a whole new generation is upon us. The masses of today have short attention spans, and with all the latest information just a click of a button away. Granted, I’m a stodgy ol curmudgeon and may tend to nitpick about the “details”, but it may not prove to be too much of a factor in today’s information age and clickbait mentality. So, having said that, the band in this current incarnation, I can say I am much more drawn to their current sound. A prominent thrashier sentiment has been introduced, and I find myself pulled into the riffing and musicianship. Everybody is locked into creating in what I feel is more dynamic and neck-breakingly worthy to my jaded eardrums. The production is bright and clear, and given a higher volume, be ready for your speakers to take a beating. I know you all are also thinking about it, but you will be happy to know that my thin-skinned sensibilities were not offended at all with this release. Plus, they have included a cover of MALEVOLENT CREATION’s ‘Infernal Desire’ so it can’t be bad, right?! Give the band a looksee and see what you think of them. www.facebook.com/resurrected.brutaldeath, www.facebook.com/testimonyrecords