Track Listing

1. In the Arms of Perdition
2. Furtive Monologue
3. Quarantine
4. Ills of Modern Man
5. Fractured Hand
6. Sheltered Reminiscence
7. Nameless
8. Tears of the Blameless
9. Oval Shaped Incisions
10. Fainted Blue Ornaments

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #63175 in Music
• Released on: 2007-05-22
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Customer Reviews

They Did It Again
"The Ills Of Modern Man" shows us that Despised Icon remains one of the most interesting and diverse bands to come out during this current "deathcore" resurgence. It still retains the sound that "The Healing Process" had as well, so don't be looking forward to a disappointment. It seems in certain tracks that the band has taken more of their hardcore influence throughout the CD, but that doesn't take them a step down. Each song is diverse and won't bore you. Whether it would be the sick opening in "Furtive Monologue", the Cryptopsy-esque entrance to "Quarantine", the multiple tempo changes in "The Ills of Modern Man" or the surprising melodic riff in "Fainted Blue Ornaments", this CD has a lot of variety. Also, many of the band's native countrymen from Cryptopsy, Ion Dissonance, Neuraxis, Beneath The Massacre, and even their "Consumed By Your Poison" era female vocalist make guest appearances on this album. I almost forgot, remember the song "Oval Shaped Incisions" from the Bodies In The Gears of the Apparatus split? It's here again, re-recorded!

Overall, I recommend this album if you like extreme music, and if you also like a lot of variety. It may not be "tr00 death metal", but it's excellent, and this band could make a huge impact on the extreme music scene.

ills Of Modern Man
this album kills from the beginning, i remember first hearing of these guys on music choice metal with "as bridges burn" that honestly got me hooked. but this album kills you can tell this band really grew by just listening to the album. i prefer these guys more then job for a cowboy and dont get me wrong i like them to but genesis sorta... sucked? whats up with the 2 min songs lol. anyway pick this cd up if you love brutal breakdowns or just intense brutal metalcore or deathcore

A definite step forward
Coming off of their good-but-with-room-for-growth debut, Montreal's Despised Icon have returned as a leaner, heavier, and more focused and confident band. This year's "The Ills of Modern Man" is an extremely mean, punishing, bludgeoning, and brutal album which possesses a stronger grindcore influence than 2005's "The Healing Process." Despised Icon's musicianship is also quite a bit improved and tighter this time around. The two guitarists (Eric Jarrin and new member Al Glassman) wrap their riffs and leads around each other so tightly that they sound like one person with four hands.

"The Ills of Modern Man" is more-or-less an explosive onslaught of sonic violence from start to finish. Darn near every second of this disc's thirty-nine minute running time is occupied by a visceral vocal, bludgeoning riff, devastating blast beat, huge breakdown, and/or earth-shaking rhythm. Thus, it should go without saying that this isn't the easiest stuff on earth to listen to. Plus, there is some song-to-song repetition, so the album may grow a bit stale in parts. But it is sure to get better with repeat listens; the more times you listen to "TIOMM," the more it becomes intricate and less monotonous.

Set opener "In the Arms of Perdition" and the title track are blastfests from beginning to end. The former is a definite album highlight because it also features some groovy riffs, a brief but nice harmonic solo, and a catchy gang shout. "Furtive Monologue" and "Tears of the Blameless" find vocalist Steve Marois laying down some wicked pig squeals over hefty, pounding riffs that would make Crowbar proud. "Quarantine" begins with breakneck, buzzsaw guitars, but when a breakdown kicks in, the song slows way down adopts chunky, booming riffs. "Fractured Hand" works in reverse order: beginning slowly, with thunderous, bottom-heavy power chords, but eventually the drummer speeds the tempo up, and the song climaxes in all-out blasting fury. "Sheltered Reminiscence" is backed by ultra chunky, lumbering riffs that fall on the listener's ear drums like cement blocks, more rapid-fire drumming, and even a prominent bass line near the end. Elsewhere, "Oval Shaped Incisions" evokes Converge, and "Nameless" boasts absolutely blistering guitar-drum interplay.

If you manage to make it to the end song, "Fainted Blue Ornaments," you're in for a real treat. It begins with a melodic riff before going full blast into double-time pummel that might just shake a few of the teeth in your head loose. Then, however, the listener is thrown a curveball when the song segues into an acoustic interlude/solo that's downright pleasurable!

All in all, "The Ills of Modern Man" does nothing to reinvent metalcore, deathcore, or death-grind, but it is still a very strong, solid, and satisfying album which is chock-full of impeccable, highly technical musicianship, and marks a substantial step forward for Despised Icon.