Aborted – ManiaCult
Release Date: 10th September 2021
Label: Century Media Records
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Genre: Death Metal, Grindcore.
FFO: Carcass, Cannibal Corpse, Decapitated, Suffocation.
Review By: Trina Julian Edwards
Legendary Belgian death metal icons, Aborted, have returned with their highly-anticipated 11th studio album, ManiaCult. Led by the band’s sole original member, vocalist Sven de Caluwé, the lineup includes drummer Ken Bedene, guitarist Ian Jekelis, and bassist Stefano Franceschini. After a career spanning 26 years and 11 studio albums, the current fearsome foursome have put out their sickest and most dynamic record to date.
Although there is plenty of the dirty, grinding gore we’ve come to know and love, Aborted still manage to make their trademark formula sound fresh. Right off the mark, Verderf lures its victims with a weighty, ponderous undertone that insidiously ups the creep factor without sacrificing the brutality we’ve come to expect from an Aborted album. Not to be outdone, the blistering title track, Maniacult, immediately grabs the listener by the throat with thunderous blast beats and aggressive guitar riffs. Contributing to the glorious mayhem is guest vocalist Joe Badolato from deathcore standbys Fit For An Autopsy. This punishing trend continues with the technical wizardry of the sinister Impetus Odi and the blackened grindcore gorgeousness of Portal to Vacuity.
Although the previous tracks are a hard act to follow, Dementophobia rises to the occasion with riffs galore and a slew of tempo changes to keep things interesting. Of course the album wouldn’t be complete without a song about one’s bowels, and A Vulgar Quagmire does not disappoint. Up next is an unexpected but not unwelcome change of pace. The orchestral interlude Verbolgen, is a beautiful, atmospheric piece that will give you cold chills up and down your spine; however, that respite is not to last. The following track, Ceremonial Ineptitude, throws the listener firmly back into the deep end with its precise rhythms and filthy breakdowns.
Another welcome surprise is the addition of Filip Danielsson of Humanity’s Last Breath on the dark, melodic Drag Me To Hell, which is both moody and disquieting in its intensity. Rounding off this gleeful horror spree is the bone-rattling Grotesque and the savage yet thought-provoking I Prediletti: The Folly of the Gods.
Overall, ManiaCult is a perfect marriage of the more technical, textured sounds of 2018’s TerrorVision and the darker atmosphere of their 2020 EP, La Grande Masquerade. With styles ranging from grindcore to melodic death, their latest offering showcases the band’s versatility and demonstrates exactly why Aborted remain a relevant force in extreme death metal. 
(4 / 5)
