Album review: Downfall of Mankind “Vile Birth”
Portuguese slamming deathcore band punches us in the face with a splendidly brutal debut album with a symphonic twist.
This is absolutely mental. The music of Downfall of Mankind is insane from the haunting opening of the first track, the splendid “Beneath the Aftermath”. And gloriously terrific! The band Downfall of Mankind does indeed sound like it is the end of humanity. Formed in 2019, this slamming deathcore metal band from Portugal plays an insane kind of brutal music that is best described as awesome chaos. The album is a non-stop attack on the listener’s senses. There is a reason that the album was named “Vile Birth”: the album sounds like a painful, drawn-out delivery of a baby born out of wedlock. Following the “The Path of Human Existence” EP in 2020, “Vile Birth” is the band’s full-length debut album. And what a magnificent debut it is. There are symphonic parts that give the mayhem some interesting texture and layers. “For I Am Terror” is such a track that combines heavy brutality with symphonic bits and features an excellent vocal performance by Canadian deathcore singer Kyle Anderson of Brand of Sacrifice. We also get a few more juicy guest appearances on the album by Caleb Branham of Lowlife, Julien Truchan of Benighted and Luis Diaz of Counteractt. “Maker’s Funeral” is another excellent track where the symphonic choirs in the background of the soundscape set this band apart from many other deathcore bands. My favourite track on the album is “Divine Slaughter”, which musically reminds me of Belgium’s Aborted. What an enjoyable debut album by a very good band!
Downfall of Mankind’s album “Vile Birth” is out now via Lacerated Enemy Records.
