BLOODBATH - Nightmares Made Flesh [cd] (CD)

Bloodbath is a titan of death metal from Stockholm, Sweden, notable for the inclusion of ‘Katatonia’ & ‘Opeth’
members & in their recent era, welcoming Nick Holmes of UK doom legends ‘Paradise Lost’ to join in with the
brutality. Formed in 1998 with a mutual fascination for horror & the glory days of death metal from classic
bands such as Entombed, Morbid Angel, Cancer & Autopsy, Bloodbath has remained a leading light of extreme
metal since their ‘Breeding Death’ EP was unleashed back in 2000 & a formidable force for over 20 years,
cemented in recent times by their ‘Grand Morbid Funeral’ (2014) opus & its follow-up, the even blacker-
hearted 'The Arrow Of Satan Is Drawn' in 2018.
'Nightmares Made Flesh' was Bloodbath's second studio album & was originally released in 2004. With Mikael
Akerfeldt no longer on vocal duties, it was the chance for another metal legend to step in, in the shape of
Hypocrisy's Peter Tägtgren & with Dan Swanö now joining Anders Nyström on guitars, this was also the
Bloodbath debut of Opeth's drummer extraordinaire, Martin Axenrot.
Considered quite an evolution or even departure from their debut, 'Nightmares Made Flesh' expanded on the
melodic & technical elements & formed an album more complex in its scope, tempo & rhythmic approach &
less a pure dedication to the old school scene. The album also utilised some influences more in line with metal
from further afield compared to previous releases, whilst still firmly marking their own identity with hook-filled
anthems such as fan-favourite, 'Eaten'.