Album Review: Nile-At the Gate of Sethu

South Carolina tech-death masters Nile have almost always been at the top of the heap when it comes to technical death metal bands. They are responsible for some of the most complex, innovative, heavy, and flat-out amazing material that the genre has to offer. This high standard that they have set for themselves is exactly why I was incredibly letdown by their newest release At the Gate of Sethu.

Saying At the Gate of Sethu is a major letdown is an understatement. I straight-up did not expect something this stale-sounding from a band like Nile. At the Gate of Sethu is especially disappointing considering Nile is coming off arguably their best album in Those Whom the Gods Detest. From the minute the album started I knew it was going to be underwhelming in comparison to their other material. The riffs aren't as catchy, the vocals aren't as good, and the production is completely flat and sloppy. It completely threw me off at first and I didn't even think I was listening to a completed Nile album. It sounded like it was rushed and far from complete (Which is really odd considering Those Whom the Gods Detest came out three years ago and they had ample time to write this record.) As the album progressed it has it's fair share of ups and downs. On the downside, the Middle Eastern influences are almost completely absent and they have introduced these grating, obnoxious clean vocals on a few songs. The lack of Middle Eastern influence takes away a big part of what makes Nile so unique as a band. The Middle Eastern influences aren't even thrown into a forefront of song until the final track "The Chaining of the Inqitious", which is unsurprisingly the best track on the album. The clean vocals are an even a bigger problem than the lack of their Middle Eastern influences. The clean vocals were a nice thought to try add another element to their music, but they just don't work at all. I'm all for experimentation in music, but this was definitely a failed experiment by Nile. Really the only saving grace that lifts this album from the depths of mediocrity to being half-decent is Karl Sanders. Although the riffs are generally not as inspired as usual, he still throws in some great riffs sporadically throughout the album. More importantly his solos are still amazing. His solo work is primarily why this album isn't completely subpar.

At the Gate of Sethu is immensely disappointing. Although it's still a decent, listenable record, I expected much better from Nile. It may be a curse for them after releasing a completely awesome album they release a disappointing one (The same thing happened with Anhillation of the Wicked  and Ithyphallic). Nile is still an excellent technical death metal band, this is just them at their absolute worst. Without a doubt a contender for most disappointing album of the year.

3/5 Stars
Standout Tracks
1.The Chaining of the Inqitious
2.Supreme Humanism of Megalomania
3.The Inevitable Degradation of Flesh