About.com Rating

Hell Chose Me is the third full-length from Carnifex. There are still plenty of 'core elements in their sound along with crushing death metal. It's an intense effort, with dense riffs, blast beats, breakdowns and pinch harmonics.

Songs like “Entombed Monarch” feature guitar parts that are sometimes thrashy, and at other times have a black metal vibe. About halfway through the album is “Heartless,” a song that starts out with acoustic guitar that provides a nice interlude before the brutality resumes.


“Sorrow Spell” has a brief but catchy guitar solo along with galloping riffs and a powerful breakdown. There are several songs on Hell Chose Me with a clever intro, but then devolve into typical deathcore that quickly grows repetitive. Scott Lewis does a good job varying his vocals, ranging from low pitched death metal growls to high pitched black metal rasps.

Carnifex does attempt to inject some variety into Hell Chose Me, which makes it more compelling than the typical deathcore effort. Fans of the genre will appreciate the album, but the breakdowns, pig squeals and repetition narrow its appeal to extreme metal aficionados.

(released February 16, 2010 on Victory Records)

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