Adorior – Bleed on My Teeth (Female-Fronted Bloody and Blackened Death Metal)
Goddamn. You often hear the buzzwords “female-fronted metal,” but what does that actually mean? So there’s a woman in there somewhere, got it. Why point it out? Well, often, it’s simply because women in metal are not as visible as men. Okay, got it. But here’s the problem I often find with this. Apologies for controversy but women in metal tend to merely puppet the menfolk. Do they lack skill? Certainly not, but, there’s something unique in the feminine spirit that men simply lack the ability to emulate. Why fight it? Give in, dominate, destroy! Already you might be thinking WTF, but listen here; the primary issue with women in metal is why mention it if you can’t really distinguish women from men when you listen to it? Czechia’s Emasculator, for example, need not even mention gender, just stick to “death metal” and don’t even bother mentioning anything else. Here with Adorior’s Bleed on My Teeth, however, “female-fronted” is more than warranted, it is a statement of brutal identity ready to bleed the weak.
If you’ve never heard of them, Adorior have been around quite awhile, slicing skin with all kinds of bloodied, horrific imagery and a musical edge to keep the scars deep. Lead Jaded Lungs is the true barbed wire crown to this outfit, however. Musically, don’t be fooled, Adorior provide impressively inventive approaches to blackened death metal and some of the most memorable riffs and solos I’ve heard in years. But…back to that female-fronted metal thing. The vocals here not only sound different, they’re horrifying. The listener can tell almost immediately it’s a woman at the head, but instead of puppeting style, as most men do as well, btw, she’s doing her own thing, which is exactly why those buzzwords can be and, especially in this case, are important. Jaded Lung’s vocal style is feminine, but morally and ideologically dominating. With a raspy, biting hate much like a witch tied to a stake who can never burn, her particular edge and delivery give Adorior that needed push to the front of the genre. At times she vocalizes like casting incantations with a barbed tongue, with a slightly 3-on-2 tempo, other times her shrieking rushes from the flames to gain your absolute attention. Truly memorable stuff, including some layering with the rest of the cast on songs like “Scavenger of Vengeance” that provide just the right amount of variety without reducing her dominance. Ladies, take heed of how it’s done.
Written by Stanley, Devourer of Souls
Adorior – Bleed on My Teeth
Dark Descent Records
Cover Art: Nuno Zuki (Belial NecroArts)
4.8 / 5
