Album Review: Malformed - Confinement of Flesh
Reviewed by Sam Jones
After their initial announcement to play this year’s edition of Kill-Town Deathfest, Malformed were a band I was particularly keen on checking out regarding this upcoming full length release. Formed in 2022 out of Helsinki, Finland, Malformed are a rising act and thus far have released a Demo, Uncontrollable Malformity, followed by a Live Album and their The Gathering Of Souls EP, each of which came out in 2023. With another two years under their belt, Malformed are preparing to deliver on their biggest release to date: Confinement Of Flesh. For many including myself this will be their first exposure to the band and therefore this record holds significant purpose for the band, it’s their opportunity to show people what they can do. Finnish death metal is renowned for its putridity and tone and here’s hoping, come July 25th, Malformed may be added to Finland’s vast roster. Released via Dark Descent Records it’s a good sign of Malformed’s rapport and the quality of extreme metal they’re set to deliver on. This is Confinement Of Flesh.
Given how Finnish death metal is renowned for being the filthy force it is, it’s intriguing you can hear and feel the bass as strongly as you do herein. That’s not to say the basslines are merely audible but the bass work really sets itself apart from the rest of the band by striking out with licks and riffs that don’t feel hemmed in by the rest of the songwriting. It sounds like they’re using a fretless bass perhaps given the fluidic nature of the basslines, reaching low for twangs and grooves that refuse to follow the exactly linear path of the guitar playing. Regarding the bass within the mix, I feel it’s spot on what the band needed to project their dripping, miasmic sound for you can feel every riff they play seemingly outlined and their bass drums, even at speed, harness a comfortable, rolling momentum that doesn’t attempt to bludgeon the audience. The bass here is handled with care as within extreme metal we all know it’s easy to go overboard on blasting bass at the audience.
For a band who are only releasing their first studio album and are relatively new, I was surprised by how clean Confinement Of Flesh really was. Many may be expecting copious quantities of dirt or grime beneath the record’s nails, but instead Malformed deliver a far more polished and pristinely organised performance than many will expect. As a result it offers us a rare look into Finnish death metal that hasn’t been completely warped by hideous soundscapes; Malformed still offer a dangerous atmosphere loaded with lethality except it’s were not having to dig our way through layers of production to discover the gold inside. Blast beats, piercing strumming, growling vocals, all such things are on clear display for you to appreciate.
Owing to the vastly cleaner nature of Malformed’s production it gives us a chance to listen harder at the smaller intricacies that makes this record worthwhile, and one such element are the drums. Yes, blast beats and bass drum flurries are a given in such a performance but I was taken aback at just how technical the drums are here. “Obscure Wails From Beyond” is the prime highlight for the drums as we behold how unconventional these patterns are; you’ll pick up on how varied and spread across the kit these strikes are and the ever-changing rhythmic signatures thrown at us. You’ll believe you’ve got the drums down and understood only for their drummer, Jani Seppi, to change it up entirely. He’s very good at what he does.
In addition, the guitar work also possesses a super clean and smooth texture whereby not a single lick will be lost on you. But more so than that the guitar work feels light as a feather; there’s evident strength behind the performance as you feel the biting, slicing aesthetic of the riffs thrust through you but it’s remarkably lenient on the senses. Thus Malformed’s death metal is enchantingly alluring given you can listen to the record multiple times over, recurring, without your senses capacity to maintain attention waning. Death metal like that is rare and it’s terribly difficult to achieve that balance but Malformed just straddle that line. The tracks are also short, their songwriting doesn’t attempt going on and on or try to offer more nuanced songwriting; Malformed know themselves and what their preferred stance is towards extreme metal. Confinement Of Flesh might not give you anything you haven’t heard before but it’s down to such an exceptional quality you won’t be caring, especially given they’re also not trying to be speed demons either, taking you for the ride right alongside them at every moment.
In conclusion, Confinement Of Flesh is a refreshing experience contrary to the crushing, suffocating rapport Finnish death metal is often associated with. This is a record that lets you breathe without effort and then some. It is so light and relieving that listening to blistering death metal is second nature yet we can easily recognise the sweeping drums, guttural and commanding vocals, the riffs that stab from all directions etc. Serene as a ballet but the density of tungsten, that is Confinement Of Flesh, a record that flows like a river amidst sunlight but below those pristine waters are rapids and threats more than capable of sweeping life away. Malformed play this year’s edition of Killtown Deathfest come September and I’m personally hyped for their performance, especially considering their youth. Malformed’s members are each around twenty years of age, Bassist and one half of the band’s vocals, Pauli Niemi, is nineteen. Malformed are proof of metal’s longevity and given the band are only young their prospective future, should events become fruitful, may well be bright indeed. A fine record.
