Eufobia - Madness

Eufobia (translating as fear of good in Greek) have been around since 2003. A four piece from Bulgaria these guys are pretty well seasoned with three albums under their belt for their career, and after a six year gap album no. 4 “Madness” is ready to rear its ugly head. While defined as death metal one could say they are certainly more of a groove death or thrash death- not quite Vader thrash but think of them more as a groove laden Deicide or Cannibal Corpse. 

While a lot of brutal death metal bands tend to just feel like a freight train of force trying to be as savage as possible- which Eufobia may have had going for them in the earlier years- there is a little more uplifiting and catchiness to the riffs on this album, such as on the track ‘Use Your Head.’ The vocals are multi pronged, going from a growled rasp similar to Arch Enemy to a deep throated roar like that of Cannibal Corpse, to almost a more rasped bark like that of Exodus. Listeners get the full force death metal on a track like ‘Facing The Firing Squad’ whose stomping riffs and lack of groove are sure to start mosh pits. But, Eufobia have a knack for crafting anthemic, driving songs that are almost melo death inspired if not groove, such as the closing ‘Animal Farm’ which feature some of the best melodies the album has to offer, featuring plenty of head banging moments.

If one had to pick the quintessential song to showcase Eufobia’s sound, ‘Messiah’ is a good choice. Here listeners get plenty of that thrash groove mixed with the fury of death metal, a healthy dose of snarled and deep growled vocals, even though the growls are pushed more into the back and hard to understand, and varied drumming that goes from fast chops to slower more percussive ones. While some might write this off as more of a more death metal styled Metallica with the way some of the riffs are designed, one cannot deny it has its ‘draw’ points. At the same time, with most of the album, a lot of fans might feel pulled in different directions being unsure of what they are hearing is thrash or death metal, but one has to admit it at least sounds a little ‘different’ than the run of the mill death or thrash metal album to begin with. 

Looking back on the whole Eufobia discography it is safe to say that the band hasn’t really lost its rather ‘thrashy’ attitude with the lyrics and have slowly let those thrash elements work its way into the music over time. Compared to their debut, “Madness” is a huge step up, but compared to their 2016 self titled album it pretty much sits in the same boat as before. It stomps, it grooves, and it bites, so fans who are looking for an album that sounds like a more upbeat symphony of destruction without the typical motifs of either genre will find it enjoyable. 

3.5 / 5 STARS