Ulcerate – Stare Into Death And Be Still

genres: death metal + art rock

for fans of: Wake, Underoath, Obscura

Hailed as one of the most influential bands in the development of “dissonant death metal”, one would expect the music of Ulcerate to be ugly and violent. Instead, Stare Into Death And Be Still is one of the most beautiful and serene entries into heavy music in recent years. That’s not to say it’s an easy listen. A swirling cacophony of guitars and blastbeats undergird monotonously roaring vocals in a methodical meditation on life and death.

Much like fellow 2020 standout Wake, the dissonance in individual parts are used in mathematically complex patterns that come together to form incredible polyphonic melodies given life by the silence between the layers. Unlike their post-rock curious peers, there’s no respite given in this hour-long wall of sound. Despite minimal stylistic variations between tracks, the sheer virtuosity and brilliance of individual sections (along with frequent tempo changes) gives unique identities to each track. Title track “Stare Into Death And Be Still” offers the best introduction to the band, opening with a masterful first movement that moves guitars, bass, and drums around in a compositional fashion that would make many orchestral composers jealous. In another moment of genius, “Visceral Ends” borrows individual melodies from genres ranging from emo to black metal, layering them over more standard stylings in a masterful blend.

What the band does on the album thematically is just as fascinating as nuanced as their music. In a genre already preoccupied with death (it’s in the name), Ulcerate want to not just treat it as a macabre sideshow but to genuinely explore what it means for the human experience. “Exhale The Ash” offers a perfect glimpse into this, as the band borrows biblical imagery from Job and Ecclesiastes to illustrate that the fleeting, corrupt, and often painful existence on earth is but a moment in the face of a fearsome eternity. The remainder of the songs echo this concept. Though ultimately not interested in answering any questions of meaning within the album’s runtime, Ulcerate succeed in their stated mission: asking listeners to consider their mortality, and Stare Into Death And Be Still.

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