NONEXIST - DEUS DECEPTOR - NEW HAWEN
Nonexist is the new band which the ousted Arch Enemy singer Johan Liiva (also of Hearse) joined last year and Deus Deceptor is the band's debut album on New Hawen (formerly War Records) Records of Sweden. Liiva being ex-Arch Enemy, Deus Deceptor is understandably not far from Arch Enemy in sound. The band -formed under the Legacy guise- mixes different elements of metal into one potpourri and tops it with Liiva's harsh vocals. Andromeda guitarist Johan Reinholdz handles both guitars and bass here and, unsurprisingly for those who know Andromeda, has much to say. A Halo Askew, for example, has many features. Like the rest of the album, it's both fast and slow and has elements of both death and progressive metal. The song also repeats the same melody heard at the beginning of the album. Phantoms emphasizes the blasting, while Ebony Tower is equal parts bashing metal and technical fills. The progressive elements are distinctive here. Nonexist is presumably a serious band. But like every other Swedish musician, the trio heard here has other and concurrent projects on the go with drummer Modin playing also in Defleshed and Dark Funeral. For now reports indicate the band has recruited a second guitarist and a bassist - Liiva foregoing playing bass as he did in Arch Enemy - and is looking at touring in support of Deus Deceptor.