Standing shoulder to shoulder with early Death Metal legends, this old school American horde returns with their pulverizing fourth studio album.

Formed from the ashes of Mortuary in 1989 in New Jersey, the legendary American Death Metal brigade known as Deteriorot returns with their highly anticipated fourth studio offering, titled Awakening. Standing shoulder to shoulder with early Death Metal legends the likes of Immolation, Incantation, and Mortician, carving their place in underground history with a sound that merges the suffocating atmosphere of early Finnish and UK Death Metal with the brutality of the Swedish scene and the raw, uncompromising intensity of their New Jersey roots, the band formed of Paul Zavaleta on vocals and guitars, Arthur Reid also on the guitars, Travis Meredith on bass, and James Goetz on drums is on absolute fire throughout their entire new album, a worthy follow-up to their 2023 beast The Rebirth.

The dark and sinister intro Awakening, led by the Stygian bass by Travis, warms us up for The Flame, a primeval, gruesome display of Death Metal by the band with Paul vomiting the song’s words like a rabid beast; and the crushing, pounding drums by James walk hand in hand with the scathing riffs by Paul and Arthur in In Battle to Survive, a headbanging monster that will please all fans of the genre. The band’s ruthless guitar duo continues to spread darkness and hatred through their axes in Horrors in an Everlasting Nightmare, sounding as evil as it can be, whereas their hammering sounds will keep smashing our cranial skulls in A Ghost in the Mirror, with Paul once again vociferating rabidly for our total delight, with the final inhumane solo by Paul adding even more electricity to the song. And Deliver Us from Fiction is simply perfect for slamming into the pit in a demented way, sounding fast, heavy and absolutely aggressive. Needless to say, it will work majestically live.

Then a beyond phantasmagorical start gradually evolves into a visceral display of prehistorical Death Metal entitled Haunting Images from a Past Life, with James hammering his drums mercilessly, and the band then demolishes our senses with sheer savagery in the form of Programmed by Fear, alternating between Blackened Doom moments and classic, no shenanigans Death Metal. There’s no sign of peace or love in the album, and of course Winter Moon sounds as brutal as it is obscure, showcasing another excellent axe attack by Paul and Arthur. It’s also impressive how they managed to add so much doom to their core Death Metal like in In Silence, with James taking the lead with his grim beats, followed by The Spirit, the shortest of all songs and also the most violent, pulverizing everything and everyone that crosses their path, with Paul’s roars sending shivers down our spines before all comes to an end with the cadaverous outro To Sleep.

Deteriorot are definitely not fooling around when it comes to craft old school, visceral Death Metal, and the quality of the music found in Awakening is proof of their passion for the extreme and unrelenting hard work. Hence, you can find those American marauders on Facebook and on Instagram, staying up to date with their demolishing live performances, stream their demented creations on Spotify or any other streaming platform, and grab a copy of their wicked new album from the Xtreem Music’s BandCamp. After their “rebirth” and their “awakening” in recent years, it’s time for Deteriorot to rise back to the top of the classic American Death Metal mountain, staying strong and ruthless just the way we like it, and leaving us eager for more of their music in the near future.

Best moments of the album: In Battle to Survive, Deliver Us from Fiction and The Spirit.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2025 Xtreem Music

Track listing
1. Awakening 1:24
2. The Flame 4:11
3. In Battle to Survive 3:35
4. Horrors in an Everlasting Nightmare 3:46
5. A Ghost in the Mirror 3:33
6. Deliver Us from Fiction 3:57
7. Haunting Images from a Past Life 2:32
8. Programmed by Fear 3:52
9. Winter Moon 3:25
10. In Silence 4:04
11. The Spirit 1:55
12. To Sleep 0:33

Band members
Paul Zavaleta – vocals, guitars
Arthur Reid – rhythm guitars
Travis Meredith – bass
James Goetz – drums