ALBUM REVIEW – SKELETAL REMAINS

Originating from California, Skeletal Remains first appeared on the death metal scene in ’11, quickly releasing their first full-length album Beyond the Flesh a year later in ’12. The debut was followed by Condemned to Misery in ’15, Devouring Mortality in ’18, and their most successful and critically acclaimed album The Entombment of Chaos dropping in ’20.

Guitarist and vocalist Chris Monroy is the only constant in the band appearing on every album. Rounding out the current line-up is guitarist Mike De La O (who was an original member in ’11 but stepped aside for personal reasons, returning in ’20), bassist Brian Rush and drummer Pierce Williams. The earlier Skeletal Remains records were clearly playing homage to old school death metal legends like Morbid Angel, Pestilence and Obituary. These influences were extremely evident on the earlier material and the band faced some criticism for lacking originality. That may have been fair criticism at the time, but I always felt Skeletal Remains still delivered strong enjoyable death metal despite wearing their influences on their sleeves.     

Fast forward to ’24, Skeletal Remains are about to unleash their fifth full-length studio album, Fragments of the Ageless. 2020’s Entombment of Chaos revealed a significant step-up in overall musicianship and songwriting quality, and I’m happy to report that trend occurs again on Fragments of the Ageless. The brutality and intensity levels remain sky high, but the technical progression continues to elevate Skeletal Remains’ sound. Chris’s vocals have never sounded better. He’s maturing as a vocalist and developing his own unique delivery. I dig his barbaric raspy delivery and appreciate the fact that his vocals are clearly decipherable.

The rhythm section of Brian and Pierce delivers pummeling grooves, well placed tempo changes, and a good old fashioned unrelenting aural battering. The guitar work is outstanding. I love the tones, massive chunky riffs and dialed up technicality displayed in the solos. Lastly, the tracks contain addictive hooks and are catchy as hell. Any prior criticism that Skeletal Remains lack originality has been to put to rest… END of story! Fragments of the Ageless is a high-quality slab of death metal featuring the best of the old and new approaches to the genre.          

‘Relentless Appetite’ is the perfect album opener launching at a brutality level of 110% from the very first note, but also incorporates plenty of hooks, powerhouse drumming, and a pinch of melody (primarily in the well-executed guitar leads). It’s immediately clear Chris’s vocal delivery continues to improve and he’s becoming a significant weapon in the Skeletal toolbox.

The savagery continues on ‘Cybernetic Harvest’ which begins with a vicious machine-gun drum bombardment and benefits from some well-placed slower tempo changes and excellent technical guitar bursts. The guitar shredding shines again on ‘To Conquer The Devout’ sitting nicely on top of the underlying musical chaos. Skeletal Remains incorporate some impressive thrash elements into ‘Forever In Sufferance’ which also features some cool thick groove-oriented riffing, vicious drumming, and intricate guitar work.   

The guys are back in old school death metal mode on ‘Verminous Embodiment’ with plenty of mosh inducing hooks, ominous riffing, and a very strong vocal performance from Chris. ‘Ceremony Of Impiety’ is a brief minute and a half atmospheric instrumental that’s heavy on keyboards (played by bassist Brian Rush). It provides a welcomed break from the crushing intensity of the other tracks. This piece wouldn’t be out of place on a horror soundtrack.

One of my favorite tracks comes next, ‘Void Of Despair’ is brutal, speedy, catchy and successfully utilizes rhythmic changeups to great effect. The longest track on the album ‘Unmerciful’ is the most dynamic and epic, progressing through doom, mid and blast beat tempos, and features all the best components of the modern-day Skeletal Remains sound. The album, surprisingly, closes with the instrumental track ‘Evocation (The Rebirth)’ and it’s stunning. The overall feel is somewhat eerie and mysterious, with each band member given the opportunity to showcase their evolving technical musicianship. I love it.    

The album artwork by Dan Seagrave is striking and representative of the underlying music and tone. Interestingly, the band noted the artwork ultimately inspired some of the musical themes and lyrical content. The tracks were recorded using a mix of home and professional studios and the band had a clear desire to have the drums as imposing as possible. Once the guys completed the recordings, everything was sent to Sweden for mixing and mastering by studio whiz Dan Swano (Asphyx, Incantation). The final product sounds fantastic, the drums are imposing – mission accomplished, and everyone is positioned well in the mix with a nice balance between the traditional old school death metal sound and a slight modern approach more suited to the album’s newer progressive elements. 

In conclusion, Skeletal Remains have once again elevated their death metal game. The perfectly executed Fragments of the Ageless has solidified their leadership position amongst the newer generations of death metal peers. They still retain all the best elements of old school death metal but continue to mature by elevating their songwriting, increasing technicality levels, and introduceing new components to the Skeletal sound. I’m a big fan of this album and give it an 8.5/10 rating. Highly recommended if you enjoy high quality crushing death metal and appreciate a band striving to improve as musicians. 

Fragments of the Ageless will be released March 8th via Century Media Records. Preorder your copy here!