Death metal titans Defeated Sanity are set to release new album Chronicles of Lunacy November 22 via Season Of Mist. Seven might just be their lucky number. Chronicles Of Lunacy is a veritable showcase of technical, heavy death metal coupled with crazy, jazzy, breakdowns and mind bending riffage. Defeated Sanity consist of drummer and leader Lille Gruber, the son of deceased co-founding member Wolfgang Teske, Jacob Schmidt (bass), Josh Welshman (vocals), and Vaughn Stoffey (guitar).
For a band who’ve been around 30-plus years they sound tighter and more seasoned than ever. The balance they’ve drawn between raw, slamming death metal and intricate musical experimentation boggles the mind. After 30+ years lot of acts would’ve mailed this record in, not Defeated Sanity. Check out the video for the track “The Odour Of Sanctity” and prove me wrong.
Chronicles of Lunacy is an eight-song exposition focusing on a different type of corruption ranging from religious to a breakdown of the human soul and spirit, all from a lyrical perspective. Conceptually, this might be the most twisted thing Defeated Sanity has ever done. “A Patriarchy Perverse” takes a scary, hard look into the mind of killer Ed Kemper while “Heredity Violated” is a bulldozer of a way to end the record, dishing out insane, jazzy drum fills, weird time signatures, and an avalanche of heaviness which could bury a town.
To be clear this isn’t prog or math metal, it’s Defeated Sanity expanding on a sound and approach they’ve curated over the course of their career. Not everyone can marry raw brutality and aggression with a high level of musical technicality but that’s what Defeated Sanity have accomplished with Chronicles Of Lunacy.
Death metal’s been around since the late 80’s so much of what we hear today can sometimes sound like a variation on a theme. It’s a tough gig and a tall order to come up with something original, not to mention different, that nails a bullseye but Defeated Sanity have done it here. Standout tracks include the slow chugger “Temporal Disintegration” and the all out mosh fest of “Accelerating The Rot.” Chronicles Of Lunacy is not only a must buy, it’s one of the top death metal records of 2024. All hail Defeated Sanity.
