Age is a factor that the dudes of Malevolent Creation seem impervious to and with their brand new studio album (their 11^th) the band sounds as strong and powerful as ever.

All the hallmarks of a great and fulfilling Death Metal album are here: earthshaking riffs, a breathtaking rhythm section and the perfect tonality of Death Metal vocals. Most crucially, however, the album impresses when all these elements come together as an organic whole. Kudos to Erik Rutan (Morbid Angel, Hate Eternal) - who co-produced and mixed the album - for his contribution in making that happen.

Yep, there’s no lack of great riffs in “Invidious Dominion” - for example ‘Conflict Finalised’ contains riffs well-paced with the rest of the composition and in ‘Born Again Hard’ the song’s ultra-fast riffing is adequately peppered with intense staccato-type riffs. The best, however, is probably left for the last – vocal phrasing, guitar solos and sharp drumming emerge as major aural ingredients of a title-track that pretty much encapsulates the album’s brutal ethos.

“Invidious Dominion” is only marginally undeserving of the ‘masterpiece’ tag – a couple of tracks - such as ‘Antagonized’ - didn’t impress me too much and the band certainly doesn’t break any new ground. But there’s no doubt that this is an exciting and intense album that will knock you off your feet.