In the spring of 2018, the band announced that they started to work on their new album and their
long-awaited new album was released last week. Jason Suecof is the producer of The Passage of
Existence album which was released by the Metal Blade Records, and the mix of the album was
made by Mark Lewis, whom we know from Megadeth. The album’s overall composition structure
and sound dynamics resemble those of the Spiritual Apocalypse album released 11 years ago, but
you certainly understand that there is a lot more labour and progress on it. The compositions of the
album made with sharp dedication and formulation and a very clean yet destructive sound await you
through the album.
Guitar structures are typical of Monstrosity’s dynamics, and since their first album, they have been
continuing their original sound by developing themselves in each album and adding new dynamics. In
the past 11 years, I can easily say that there is nothing lost in the compositions and in the band’s
death metal spirit. The entire album features composing infrastructures of mid-tempo shredding and
fast rhythm guitars and notational and rythmic drums were composed by the main man and
composer Lee Harrison. In this album, as rhythm guitar player, Chaos Inception guitarist, Matt Barnes
joined the band. Since 2006, Mark English who has been the lead weapon of the band has also
revealed the real concept of the album with the riffs and the solos from different dimensions, and you
can also find him in the new album of Deicide with his sick solos. Mike Paggione’s fluent and leading
bass compositions are definitely classy on this album. Mike Hrubovac, one of the most active
vocalists of the US underground music world is the frontman of the band. His vocals are both melodic
and amazingly brutal, and he’s certainly fit well in Monstrosity’s unique sound. In the lyrics, sci-fi and
inter-dimensional issues have been heavily involved in this album as far as I understood, and they
focused on beyond earthly physics and existence. If you are bored with the childish concepts of
today’s groups, the album has a well- structured concept, gives you a mature perspective and has a
solid harmony between the compositions and lyrics.
It’s been 11 years since the Spiritual Apocalypse albums, and it is obviously made me feel like ages
have just passed over. I have no idea about the true reason why Lee Harrison and the rest of the
band have left Monstroity idle for so long. But to inform, in recent years, Lee has also been giving
gigs with Terrorizer-Pete Sandoval as a guitarist, and he also plays the guitars on the album called Caustic
Attack will be released this fall.
Monstrosity’s The Passage of Existence album is very well-planned and composed and has killer
notations, compositions and lyrics. A death metal album that is completely mature, conscious and
connected to the original spirit of the band and death metal. Between Monstrosity’s classics in the
90s and albums in the 2000s, there is definitely a solid continuation of the elements, absolutely it will
give you what you want as a classic USA death metal band.
8,50/10
