Gruesome – Silent Echoes

Written by on 07-06-2025 at 15:20.

Ah, album number three by these Death-fanatics. As a big fan of the late musical mastermind Chuck Schuldiner, I have of course had my eye on Gruesome for quite some time. And yet I have not been completely converted. Second album Twisted Prayers is “shining” in the CD cabinet here, but it does not do much more than that. The issue is that Gruesome on that record – with all the good intentions – simply stays too close to the original. Some riffs you can put over the original Death ones to find out how they are bent slightly different. And then I usually play the original. So why give Silent Echoes a chance? A number of reasons, all of which can be found in the promo text.

Most importantly, singer/guitarist Matt Harvey (also: Exhumed) says: “There’s less winking at the audience on this one”. By that he means that the very emphatic homages have been replaced by a more original musical story. The album still has been written and recorded in the spirit of Death’s Human though. That is also the second reason to push play on this promo, because what a masterful album that is. And if it remains with “the spirit of” and not “based on”, then this could turn out very nicely. And indeed, On Silent Echoes Gruesome still sounds inspired by Chuck, but is much more free in the execution. Bonus points already! In addition – reason three – the album is also a tribute to Sean Reinert, the drummer who not only played drums so brilliantly on Human but also on Cynic’s masterful Focus. Sean was supposed to produce this third Gruesome but unfortunately suddenly passed away in 2020. The band members, led by his friend and drummer Gus Rios (also: Kill Division), have done their best to give Sean’s presence a place throughout the record.

As said, Silent Echoes stands on its own two feet much more than Gruesome‘s previous releases. It is less easy to link the songs on this record one-on-one to songs by Death. At the same time, the atmosphere of Human is captured nicely, although the production and mix sound a bit fuller. We are almost 35 years further, people! When you press the “play” button, a critical eyebrow does go up, because at first the drums seem to sound a bit tinny. It is certainly not impossible the band simply wanted to push the drums a bit further forward in the sound – for Sean. Oh well, turn up the volume a bit and you won’t notice it anymore.

In any case, it is good to hear the drums a bit in front, because Rios plays some pretty nice parts. I don’t hear the real jazzy touch of Sean Reinert much in it though. Rios mainly brings a lot of drive and makes the whole thing sound a bit more grounded. He himself is the first to say that Sean was more complete. That and the absence of Steve DiGiorgo make Silent Echoes sound less progressive and groundbreaking (again, we are almost 35 years further) than Human, but for once that is not a problem at all. We ‘just’ get very well-flowing death metal with solid, sometimes somewhat distorted riffs, beautiful drum patterns and flowing solos that together ensure a good mood. The grunt of Matt Harvey is also – it should not come as a surprise after all these years – excellent. Perhaps a vocal line here and there could be a bit more moving (never a problem with Death), but that is really nitpicking with an album that is so full of quality.

You want examples of said quality? Okay, the solos in Frailty and Reason Denied are really finger-biting good (licking them is no longer enough). Sometimes with a nice edge, sometimes ultra-melodic, but always focused and urgent. The spirit of Death can also be found in the ingenious, sometimes slightly prying, but always sufficiently heavy riffs that – just like the drums – keep pushing things forward. Here too, the closing Reason Denied serves as convincing evidence. The nice accelerations in opener Condemned Identity with an interesting short pinch on the neck at the end of the riff certainly bring a lot to the musical table too. Put on your dancing shoes and go! And then that whirlwind of biting riffs in Frailty. In the fast Shards we hear another such cyclone, while the melody never disappears from sight (or hearing). It all fits! The instrumental Voice Within The Void is also good, but breaks the spell a bit. The musical themes are perhaps a bit light to carry the entire 4:45. And a fade-out doesn’t really help either.

Favorite tracks are not hard to guess after the above. Frailty and Reason Denied are already classic death metal tracks that stand completely on their own and still evoke the feeling of the early 90s. They sound inspired and familiar at the same time. So you see: “in the spirit of” is much more fun (and free) than taking previous work as a starting point. Silent Echoes is a wonderful death metal record on which everything seems to fall into place for Gruesome. A record that on the one hand gives nostalgic feelings and on the other hand gives the redeeming certainty that this kind of death metal can still sound current. It is also a record with which Gruesome gives its possible expiration date a considerable push into the future.

Score:

87/100

Label:

Relapse Records, 2025

Tracklisting:

  1. Condemned Identity
  2. A Darkened Window
  3. Frailty
  4. Shards
  5. Silent Echoes
  6. Voice Within The Void
  7. Fragments Of Psyche
  8. Reason Denied

Line-up:

  • Dan Gonzalez – Guitar
  • Matt Harvey – Guitar, vocals
  • Gus Rios – Drums
  • Robin Mazen – Bass guitar

Links: