As Memory Dies, a new melodic death metal band from Italy have just released their debut album entitled “Transmutate”. Only by looking at the cover, (created by Niklas Sundin guitarist of Dark Tranquillity) I knew that I was about to listen to an album that has its musical roots in Sweden, and only by listening to the first riff of the first track “Eyeway To Identity” suspicions were confirmed. As Memory Dies are a true continuation of old In Flames, Dark Tranquillity and At The Gates!

“Transmutate” is an album filled with very powerful riffs, great melodies, a few atmospheric changes and intros that give a more passionate touch to there music and vocals so powerful and so aggressive, equal to which I haven’t heard since At The Gates’s “Slaughter Of The Soul”.  However, it is not the typical catchy death metal album with 3-4 minute songs. All the songs of the album tend to be long with many melodic changes making it a bit hard to follow with the first listen but however they never get boring. What impressed me the most was the trilogy at the end of the album “The Tragical History Of Doctor Faustus-Act 1-3” inspired by the homonymous play by the English dramatist Christopher Marlowe. In these 3 songs, I believe As Memory Dies show us the maximum of their talent as composers, mixing perfectly Death, Black and atmospheric metal.

The negative part of this album is the production and the sound quality. Comparing to today’s standards “Transmutate” lacks in sound. The album sounds as if it was recorded back in the 80s, but this is something I can forgive in a debut album especially when I can foresee a great future. On the other hand, I don’t know if you can say that it’s always a bad thing once personally some of my favourite albums like “Lunar Strain” of In Flames and “Terminal Spirit Disease” of At The Gates have probably the worst sound in the history of death metal.

Never the less, “Transmutate” came to prove that true Melodic Death Metal is not dead, that there are still new bands that can create good music and that we don’t need to search only the Swedish bands of the early 90s for something good in this genre.