Metal Underground.com

Usually when one thinks of a band that combines death metal with hardcore, the result is typically deathcore. Fate is a band that combines these elements a little differently. “Vultures” is an album that has all the elements of hardcore, but incorporates death metal riffing into the mix. Unfortunately, most of the album devolves into endless chugging that will definitely please hardcore fans, but the promise of something different displayed at the beginning of the album fizzles out quickly.

The album starts with an appropriate instrumental sweep picking piece that serves as a good intro. The second track, “Psychopathic Diary,” is probably the most technically impressive track on the album. Despite the gang vocals and breakdown, this is definitely a tech death track and a well done one at that. The hardcore elements fit the music (even the gang vocals). “Your Creed is Greed” also features some riffing that approaches tech death.

Fate tends to fall prey to writing awesome intros to mediocre songs. “Harrowing Infidelity” starts out with a blazing tremolo riff, but the rest of the song isn’t anything special and the same riff gets recycled throughout the song. “Decapitate Delilah” begins with a harrowing, deadly sounding riff, but again recycles riffs and doesn’t really stand out. The riffs at the beginning of “Ruins of Necropolis” are a great break from the chugging, but the song resorts to the chugging again for most of the song. It picks up with the melody again near the end, but that’s about it. It almost seems like Fate is stuck in some sort of comfort zone. They definitely leave it at times with some very interesting parts, but for the most part, a lot of the music either sounds very similar or doesn’t really do anything new.

From there, the majority of the album is mostly a chug-fest. “Battle Grounds Beneath My Feet” is an example of this, though the song slows down near the end for an interesting undistorted part. The title track is an instrumental melodic piece and “Ruins of Necropolis” feature more melodic riffing. Other than that, most of the music consists of a lot of chugging. Again, this is a perfect album for hardcore fans that are maybe looking for a little something unique in their music, but this is definitely not for death metal fans seeking a new sound.

Fate has put this album together well, but I would say that they would be better served by sticking to one genre. They have proved that they can play death metal, but they obviously have roots in hardcore. The band’s biggest issue is consistency; the second track is an excellent example of genre mixing and I would love to see more of it. “Vultures” shows some real promise and starts out with a ton of energy, but in the end, it’s just another hardcore album. I would recommend it to fans of that genre.