OLD MAN´S CHILD – In Defiance Of Existence / VINYL LP

So this is where Galder has been hoarding all of his decent riffs. Despite his lame phoned-in tenure in Dimmu Borgir, he was wise enough to keep Old Man’s Child alive, occasionally returning every couple of years to cash-in his accretion of ideas. In Defiance of Existence embodies a stylistic cross-section, merging symphonic passages akin to early-era Limbonic Art with more measured, riff-driven cookers and a more spirited vocal assault. Galder’s surging, macerating riffs scream of death metal more than anything, occasionally featuring ethereal passages and murky tremolo sections that are efficiently paired with Barker’s triggered, spastic performance on the kit.

In Defiance of Existence comes off as a heavier, slightly more animated twin to Spiritual Black Dimensions. The symphonic approach on the keyboards is eerily similar, but features very little of the insincere pomp that Mustis is now famous/reviled for. The swelling synth lines that open «The Soul Receiver» merge potently with the scorching distortion and Galder’s robotic intonation. The song features some decent descending riffs and arpeggio runs, becoming the best cut here by the time it wraps up. «The Underworld Domains» is more of a throwback to Old Man’s Child’s earlier material, featuring a more straightforward melodic black tremolo barrage and a quicker tempo overall. Even still, the modern trappings injected into the verses end up giving it an appeal that wouldn’t be present otherwise, as operatic cleans soar high and mighty over Barker’s deliberate patterns.