Sentience – Beyond the Curse of Death

From out of nowhere I accidentally stumble upon Sentience. While writing this I have absolutely no clue at all, how I got on the Bandcamp page of this solo project. I admit, it’s not like receiving demo tapes and wondering if it is something great you have in your hands, but I also have to say that this is a good alternative as well. Just click on a link somewhere and just listen…I did with Sentience…I think. Sentience from New Jersey, US, is the brainchild of Matt Moliti. He was once a member of Dark Empire, a progressive Power/Thrash band who released 3 full-lengths within 2006 and 2012. Dark Empire got disbanded and Matt wanted to express his fondness of “classic and early 1990s SweDeath”. Only a bit different…as most are influenced by Dismember and/or Entombed, Matt look a bit further as well and grabbed his Edge of Sanity albums from the shelves as well. Songwriting and musicianship is the keyword for him. And fuckin’ hell…he did a great job! The track “Beyond the Curse of Death” is a fast SweDeath track, but with a Darkthrone’s “Soulside Journey” twist. Better yet; “Cromlech”. After 50 seconds you will hear a homage to Cromlech’s part where Nocturno Culto sings “Lucifer…Master!”. The other two tracks are filled with killer riffs, acoustic guitars and synths to enhance atmosphere, diversity and twists within the songs. And the solos are just beyond good. This is one of the best demos I’ve heard in years. And if I don’t convince you, let me end this review with the remarks of THE man Dan Swanö himself: “One of the best SweDeath projects I have come across in the last 20 years. The perfect blend of all the highlights from the Swedish scene from 89 to 91. Truly awesome!” (Ricardo)