Metal Underground.com

Going strong since the early '90s, Impaled Nazarene is the black metal gift that just keeps on giving, now out with a 12th full-length studio album. With that much time and that many releases under their collective belts, the guys from this iconic Finnish outfit obviously know exactly what sort of sound they are going for and how to deliver it the way it needs to be delivered: fast, brutal, and with a DIY punk edge that keeps it firmly underground.

“Vigorous and Liberating Death” launches each track straight into its primary assault and then moves on once it's had its say, keeping songs at around two to three minutes in length. The sound itself is actually very accurately represented by the album cover: demonic black metal, but with a dirty punk aesthetic that doesn't care in the slightest what you think about it.

Although the sound leans old school, Impaled Nazarene does break out of some of the standard tropes, most notably with the clearly audible bass. There are also a handful of fun, over-the-top elements, from the insane scream that kicks off the album to the theatric laughter and gang chants on “Apocalypse Principle.” The album then ends on a more atmospheric and less frantic note with “Hostis Humani Generis.”

The only real downside to “Vigorous and Liberating Death” is that even with short and sweet songs, there is still a bit of a repetitive feeling by the time the album's done. Other than that, the band's latest offering is a solid slab of punishing black metal that has the underground style and cred of bands like IXXI or Root, but with a more focused and polished sound for the best of both worlds.