http://www.deitydownrecords.com

Vermin (NL), Brutal Technical Death

With Deity Down Records from 2006-present

"A Nihilistic Swarm"

TRACKLIST:

01 The Swarm
02 The Plague
03 Ascend
04 Fuel For The Flames
05 Conquer
06 The Swallowing Vortex
07 I Am The Dissident MP3
08 Birth
09 A Nihilist
10 Falling Deathwards
11 Eyes Wide Shut
12 Deviate
13 Dislekt
14 Scientific Domination
15 Collapsed Future Visions
16 Clipped Wings
17 Vertigo MP3

Released 20 May 2006

Vermin "A Nihilistic Swarm" is available through the nearest record store.
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REVIEWS:

Obliveon Webzine (DE)

By Stephan Becker

Published 2006

Rating: 70/100

Aus Holland erreicht uns mal wieder die totale Vernichtung. Vermin nennt sich der Vierer, der derzeit ohne Basser dasteht. Das man den Landsmännern bzw. Frauen von Sinister und Infinited Hate in Sachen Brutalität in nichts nachsteht, beweist der aktuelle Longplayer „A Nihilistic Swarm“, der mit seinem hyberblastenden Death Metal und dem Grunz-Gesang die Lücke zwischen Morbid Angel, Immolation und Hate Eternal füllt. Falls es denn da jemals eine gab. Ich würde die Band jetzt nicht unbedingt als „progressiv“ einstufen, so wie es das Info des brandneuen holländischen Labels Deity Down Records tut, aber handwerklich sind die Jungs – fast wie ihre musikalischen Vorbilder - über die meisten Zweifel erhaben. 16 Songs plus Intro oder gut 50 Minuten Dauerfeuer beweisen das. Lediglich die Drums bzw. die komplexeren Riffs lassen mal die ein oder andere Schwäche erkennen. Auf jeden Fall ist das Ganze ungefähr so brutal wie Khalid Boulahrouz´ Foul gegen Christian Ronaldo. http://www.verminband.nl

(noch im Aufbau); http://www.vermin.tk oder http://www.deitydownrecords.com.

Nekrologium Webzine (SE)

By T. Richter

Published 25 June 2007

Rating: 3/6

Vermin incorporate quite a lot of different styles into their death metal that at least I don't like. For example some semi-melodic modern thrash riffs and some stuff that border on being nu-metal. Occasionally a good riff or a decent song appear, but overall this is not that enjoyable. The songs are rather complex and there are simply too many of them. Not exactly crap, but too weird for my taste.

Metalrage Webzine (NL)

By DemonDust

Published 08 July 2007

Rating: 80/100

If it’s fast, grooving, brutal and possesses good vocals, nine out of ten times I tend to like it. But when filed under death metal I’m a bit picky, paying attention to production, vocal sound and originality a lot. And now the Dutch outfit Vermin has released it’s third effort onto the unsuspecting metalhead population, but will it take any prisoners?

Guess not, is my answer to that. After this seventeen track record filled with grooves, blastbeats, screams and grunts, I’ve been more than convinced about their ability to create maniacal death metal with an original touch to it. The first band that comes to mind for most people must be Cannibal Corpse, due to the rude blunt attack it has throughout the album. But I’m not a Cannibal Corpse fan at all, in fact I like this way better. There is a higher degree of originality in this music.

As their bio unravels to me, they are also influenced by acts like Meshuggah, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Immolation, all bands that try their hardest to keep metal interesting. And it sounds like they picked up on writing interesting songs, that can keep a listener’s attention for an entire album, which is usually a hard thing to do with death metal.

One of the things I really love about A Nihilistic Swarm is the groove they put down in their breakdowns. They are truly wrecking! As I know it is hard to really get to know an album in a short time, I must say that the more often I listen to it, the more I start to like it. Their infectious groove does not stop with the breakdowns, even in the fastest parts and rhythmical experiments they are noticeably present, which makes listening to this album very comfortable. Vocally some good lines are spewed out, but nothing unusual. Just your basic bowel movements and cum regurgitation. Or something of that matter.

Well when I first listened to this album I thought it would be tough to review it, but I ended up with a whole lot more to say than I expected. I hope to witness a good show of these lads very soon! Death metalheads with a hunger for originality, YOU’RE MISSING SOMETHING!!!

Metalfan Webzine (NL)

By Lana

Publushed 13 July 2007

Rating: 86/100

Nihilisme en gerelateerde aanverwanten lijken door de eeuwen heen een sleutel te zijn tot succes, roem en oproering. Tastbaar of titelmatig, deze term staat altijd garant voor een pittige pil. Nietzsche gaan we nu niet uitmeten. Vermin wel. Onze eigen Vermin, de Vermin van Alea Lacta Est en Solypsis. De Vermin die het heil dikwijls in het vage, grijze mistgebied der (geestelijk) universum zoekt en daar muzikale vertalingen uit katapulteert. Vermin is weer in the market, met een nieuwe uiteenzetting van het het doelloze. A Nihilistic Swarm.

A Nihilistic Swarm is stiekem geen hele onbekende, dertien van de zeventien nummers die op A Nihilistic Swarm staan zijn al eerder onder de mensheid verspreid. Op dit album staan de eerdere releases van Vermin, te weten Alea Lecta Est, Solypsis, de 2 nummers tellende demo uit 2003 en het nummer Eyes Wide Shit dat eerder op de compilatie-cd Blown To Pieces 3 heeft geschitterd. De intro en de ramopvolger The Plague zijn vers van de pers, evenals de nummers Falling Deathwards, Clipped Wings en Vertigo. Verder kunt u, waarde lezer, tot waarde kijker promoveren door de clip van Falling Deathwards te bezichtigen, en krijgt u maar geen genoeg van Vermin, dan staat er ook nog een heuse kijk achter de schermen bij de opnames van A Nihilistic Swarm op het menu. Genoeg Vermin al met al, lijkt mij zo.

Een terugkeer richting de muziek openbaart u en mij een erg sterk, krachtig, venijnig en doordacht album. Vermin is onze underdog, maar onterecht. Dat deze band tot dusver (anno 2006 is Vermin dan eindelijk gelabeld) van eigen beheer hoofd boven water heeft moeten houden, bepaalde grotendeels dit gegeven. En dat, terwijl Vermin ondertussen een ontzettend funeste pot deathmetal speelt. Snel, fel, doordacht en heel gewaagd, want Vermin combineert woeste razernijen met zeer technische hoogstandjes, oversture breaks, pientere solo`s en een dubbele stem waarvan er 1 buldert en de ander krast. De lompe productie van A Nihilistic Swarm, waaraan zowel nieuwe als oude nummers zijn onderwopen, woelt met gemak de hardste aardkorst om tot vruchtbare bodem der hard metaal en weet alle nummers naadloos aan elkaar te lijmen. Tijdens de keerzijde van de snelheid, want ook daar speelt Vermin handig op in middels herkenbare breaks, komt er dikwijls een drukkende sfeer om de nummers gewolkt. Zonder de wetenschap dat A Nihilistic Swarm 3 verschillende werken overkoepelt is de gedachte dat dit album een volwaardige full-length is, volgens een zorgvuldig plan samengesteld, niet meer dan logisch. Chapeau.

Een gouden zet van Vermin, deze A Nihilistic Swarm. Alleen hadden niet alle bestaande nummers van mij op deze cd gehoeven. Een selectie van de beste, die inclusief de nieuwe nummers ongeveer een half uur speeltijd opleveren, zou misschien beter zijn geweest. Een speeltijd van ruim 3 kwartier is in deze hoedanigheid wat aan de lange kant, omdat herhaling haast onvermijdelijk is. En dat is zonde, want een band als Vermin mag niet gaan vervelen, maar heeft enkel imponeren als missie en overtuiging.

Geen zwerm der nihilisme, dit. Nee, doelgerichte, systematische vernieling der slakkenhuis, trommelvlies en aambeeld middels gruwelherrie, dat is de rotsvaste stelling. De list is ontmanteld, nu moet de resistentie nog blijken.

Masterful Magazine (PL)

By Wouter Roemers

Published 2006

Rating: 60/100

Dutch death metal act Vermin have been around since 2002 and self-produced two little releases in the years prior to 'A Nihilistic Swarm'. First thing to notice is that the production has improved drastically compared to their previous efforts, but the balancing needs to better in equal measure. The guitar sound is so overbearingly thick that it is leaving virtually no room or space for the classic deep rumbling bass to flow through. The drum sound is equally as domineering, with snare drums hammering everything in relentless frenzy - cymbals are hardly audible through out at any point. Bass drums thump their way almost as heavy as the snare drums, to the point that they sometimes become interchangeable with each other. Vocalist Thomas has a mean and menacing grunt with some cool vocal lines to boot. Guitarist Ron double-duties as backing vocalist but his agonizing high pitched throaty shouts don't really add anything what Thomas can't do - as a result, there's no real vocal interaction, fireworks or trade-offs of any kind between the two. The backing vocals even hinder at certain crucial parts. Thomas (who was a session member at the time) is heard everywhere, except 'Falling Deathwards' features new vocalist Laurens. Vermin have made steady progress as far as songwriting is concerned. 'A Nihilistic Swarm' contains the entire 'Solypsis' sessions re-recorded for the occasion, 16 tracks and another obligate intro is just too much and filler material is the other of the day. Much of the 'Solypsis' material is plagued by a torrent of ballsy groove riffs coming but leading nowhere. The more recent tracks luckily seem to fix this problem and form a more coherent, naturally flowing whole. The awkward Meshuggah-like guitar leads and harmonies do however deserve a rightful mention, same goes for the abstract artwork. As an extra, there's also a promo video for 'Falling Deathwards'. Stand out tracks: 'The Swallowing Vortex', 'Scientific Domination', 'Collapsed Future Visions' and 'Falling Deathwards'.

Laermbelaestigung Webzine (DE)

By Karim

Published 28 June 2007

Rating: n/a

Nein, diese VERMIN sind nicht die schwedischen Death-Metaller. Vielmehr kommen die Urheberrechtsinhaben an 'A nihilistic swarm' aus Holland, spielen aber auch Death-Metal wenngleich der weniger schwedisch als über weiter Strecken fatal südamerikanisch klingt. Großer Einfluß der Holländer sind neben alten Prügel-Helden wie MORBID ANGEL und IMMOLATION ganz klar CANNIBAL CORPSE, die im technischeren Riffing hervorkommen wie auch MESHUGGAH, die von der Rhytmik hier und da (z.B. gleich im Opener'The Plague') als Einfluss bemüht werden. Oh Mann, Karim hat wieder Nesquick gekokst... erst von Südamerika faseln und dann keine einzige Band im Vergleich nennen. Gut beobachtet (oder auch nicht)... mit südamerikanisch meine ich in erster Linie, daß hier old-schoolig gedeatht wird und ganz besonders gern MORBID ANGEL Style gehackt. Insbesondere das Drumming ist aber tierisch rumpelig und dadurch hektisch, wodurch ich eher an die ganzen Südamerika-Satanisten als an tighten U.S. Stoff erinnert werde. Dazu gesellen sich hier aber zahlreiche technischere Einflüsse wie die erwähnten MESHUGGAH-Rhytmiken, CORPSE-mässige Hammering- und Tapping-Riffs sowie und einige Dissonanz-Sachen wie bei 'Conquer', die im Bandinfo als DILLINGER-Einfluss genannt werden. Prinzipiell ist 'A nihilistic swarm' eine ordentliche Death-Metal Kelle und live konnte die Band so auch überzeugen und sich den Platz auf dem diesjährigen Fuck the Commerce erspielen. Der Sänger hat ein sympathisch old-schooliges Death-Metal Organ und versucht den Gesang immer durch verschiedene Schreiereien aufzulockern. Das Problem an der Scheibe ist nur, daß sich VERMIN sehr oft total verheben. Nicht nur das Drumming, auch die Gitarristen klingen in den Frickeleien hörbar unsicher und viele Breaks sitzen nicht. Das schmälert den Hörgenuss leider ziemlich. Wer sich einen Kreuzüber aus klassisch-bösem Death-Metal mit starkem modernerem und verspielterem Einschlag wünscht, bekommt genau dies hier geboten. Abgesehen von der ausbaufähigen Umsetzung ist die Mucke nämlich auch auf CD ordentlich. Einfach mal reinhören.

Greekrebels Webzine (GR, link no longer valid)

By Δημήτρης Κολλινιά

Published 06 July 2007

Rating: 3/5

Ο δίσκος αυτός αποτελεί την δεύτερη ολοκληρωμένη δουλειά των Ολλανδών, ο οποίος σίγουρα τους φέρνει ένα βηματάκι μπροστά. Αυστηρά κλασσικό death metal της U.S σχολής που μοιάζει -και επηρεάζεται- με Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, Hate Eternal, Cryptopsy, μέχρι και Immolation στις πολύ τσαμπουκαλεμένες στιγμές του. Η παραγωγή κρίνεται εν τέλη μέτρια παρά το γεγονός ότι έγινε στα γνωστά και αν μη τι άλλο "βετερανικά" στους κύκλους του συγκεκριμένου ήχου Excess Studios (Thanatos και άλλα). Ο δίσκος -κινούμενος φυσικά σε up-tempo- μπορεί μεν να πάσχει από τεχνικής πλευράς αφού δεν συναντιούνται ούτε πολύπλευρα blastbeats, ούτε άλλα τεχνουργήματα, αλλά μ' αρέσει που αφήνουν ένα μικρό προσωπικό στίγμα με τα λίγα κιθαριστικά loopsαρίσματα που χρησιμοποιούν, τα οποία αν και δεν είναι progressive όπως οι ίδιοι θέλουν να λέγονται, είναι όμορφα.

'This album is the second full length release for the dutch guys, that certainly it´s a step up for them. Rigorous Classic death metal of the USA school that has similariies and sounds like: Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, Hate Eternal, Cryptopsy, also Immolation in the rough moments of the album. The production it´s judged like average even if it produced at the well known and veteran studio excess studio(Thanatos etc.) The album (based on up-tempo ofcourse) might not be technically the best one, because of the fact that you can´t hear multi blast beats and not other art perfection songs, but i like it because these guys have their own personal touch with those litle loop guitar effects that they use that they are not progressive even if themselves want to call them like that, but they are beautiful.'

FYU Webzine (BE)

By Steph PTC

Published 11 July 2006

Rating: 81/100

Formed in april 2002, Holland’s own Vermin have released two demos over the years and finally bring us their first full-length. 17 Tracks of (almost) nonstop blastbeat for a total time of 48 minutes.

I’m not used to such short tracks when it comes to brutal Death Metal, but with such speed and intensity, it’s quite a good idea. If Vermin seem to have developped a real passion for ultrafast songwriting, they can be proud of their incredible tightness. The four-piece (they’re still looking for a bassplayer) unleash their fury on every track preventing the listener from breathing and leading to some claustrophobic feelings. Fortunately, most riffs sound clear enough and ain’t muffled by the drumming insanity. Vermin add some progressive sounds and atmospheres here and there which could be considered as the band’s trademark if they were more numerous.

I wish there were more ' slow ' parts, since they really shred and vocals could also benefit from more diversity, but they’re rather intense anyway. Ultrafast Death Metal might not be my favourite style, but Vermin show they’re one of those up-and-coming bands with an incredible potential, trying to add their own touch to the genre. This first full-length is beyond spectacular!

Eternal Terror Webzine (NO, link no longer valid)

By Stig

Published 07 July 2006

Rating: 5/6

Det nederlandske death metal-bandet Vermin er i disse dager aktuelt med fullengder nr. 2. Vermin har latt seg inspirere av band som Cannibal Corpse, Hate Eternal, Morbid Angel, Cryptopsy, Immolation, Deranged, Meshuggah og Dillinger Escape Plan, og resultatet er fet death metal med progressive elementer.

Låtene er velskrevne, med interessante vrier og overganger. Gitaristene maner fram mye delikat tremolopicking (jeg er en sucker for denne typen riffing) og tunge ”chugga chugga”-riff. De står også for et par gode soloer og tidvis dyster stemning. Trommisen mestrer både kjapp blasting og mer groovy takter. Vokalmessig går det for det meste i growls, samt noen skrik.

Det eneste problemet med A Nihilistic Swarm er at et par-tre låter blir litt like. Men det glemmer man fort når fjerdesporet ”Fuel for the Flames” starter. Låta har et sinnssykt sterkt åpningsparti, etterfulgt av heftig tremolopicking og et bassparti i disharmoni med gitarene. Faen så fett! Den låta er alene god nok grunn til å sjekke ut det nye albumet til Vermin.

Dutch death metal band Vermin are currently out with their second full length album. They have taken inspiration from such bands as Cannibal Corpse, Hate Eternal, Morbid Angel, Cryptopsy, Immolation, Deranged, Meshuggah and Dillinger Escape Plan, and the result is great death metal with progressive elements.

The songs are well written, with interesting twists and turns. Vermin's guitarists conjure up a lot of delicate tremolo picking (I'm a sucker for this type of riffing) and heavy "chugga chugga"-riffs. They are also responsible for a couple of good solos and, at times, gloomy atmosphere. The drummer masters both quick blast beats and more groovy patterns. Vocalwise, it's mostly growls, plus some screaming.

The only problem with A Nihilistic Swarm is that two-three tracks sound a bit too alike. But that's something one quickly forgets when fourth track "Fuel for the Flames" kicks in. This song has an extremely strong opening, followed by awesome tremolo picking and a bass line in disharmony with the guitars. Killer stuff! This track alone is good enough reason to check out Vermin's new album.

Brutalism Webzine (NL, link no longer valid)

By Malcolm

Published 15 July 2006

Rating: n/a

17 Tracks of technical prowess is what one gets from up and rising Dutch squad VERMIN, not to be confused by the Swedish deathsters bearing the same monicker. But talking of Sweden, the most notable thing on this slab is the fascination these guys have with the Swedish sound, both when delving into old school death metal influenced riffs (their generic fold) to when they crunch out MESHUGGAH-tripping rhythms (their stronghold). Yet the influences do not stop there as drumming and lead solos tend to reek of American death and thrash metal influences, not to mention that the vocal approach, although mostly growling, shouts for a black metal approach every now and again, and does this well. In fact, I would go as far as to say that every section of music on this CD sounds well performed and reflects that the guys are well across the spectrum of all that is metal. Yet now comes the downside, and that is that technique is only a means to an end, but should never be overlooked as the end in itself. In other words, that VERMIN possess a remarkable mastery of one’s instrument is unarguable, yet on the other hand, musicianship does not stop there and unfortunately one comes across another of those many albums that would have been better to be worked out as an EP. I mean no song sticks above the other for its character, and I do not see myself raising hell at any of their gigs. Simply for the reason, that metal is known for its technical prowess nowadays, and hence songs and grabbing ideas are what I would be after. Yet overall, especially for this being a debut, I foresee that the guys can work out into a promising act given some years.

Aardschok Magazine (NL)

By Rob Broere

Published Aardschok Magazine, July 2006

Rating: 84/100

Als een band zijn muziek als progressief bestempelt, kun je daar vaak direct vraagtekens bij plaatsen. Dat geldt echter niet voor de Nederlandse death metalact Vermin. De gitaar-, drumsound en grunts vallen nog keurig binnen de kaders van de death metal. Sterker nog, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel en Cryptopsy horen overduidelijk bij de grootste voorbeelden van deze heren. Maar ritmisch is er op Vermin’s tweede album aanzienlijk meer aan de hand dan bij die death-dinosaurussen. Dat zal ermee te maken hebben dat de mannen graag naar Meshuggah en The Dillinger Escape Plan luisteren. Een nummer als “Fuel For The Flames” laat je dan ook alle hoeken van je kamer zien. En na het horen van “The Swallowing Vortex” weet je voorgoed wat “deathmetalcore” inhoudt. Eigenlijk verveelt “A Nihilistic Swarm” geen moment. Er wordt flink gevarieerd in tempo, en de nummers barsten van de ideeën. Hulde!

Supreme Brutality Webzine (DK)

By PSL

Published 2006

Rating: 5/10

Dutch deathers Vermin have been in the renowned Studio Excess to record 17 songs and the outcome is their debut A Nihilistic Swarm. Musically the band is inspired by the likes of Cannibal Corpse, Hate Eternal, Immolation and Deranged. The result is not that exciting. Sure the music is varied, but somehow it still appears a bit too same-sounding. Particularly the drumming is to blame for this. Often it seems a bit too one-tracked. However, the band doesn't solely rely on inspiration from death metal. Vermin also seek inspiration in bands like Meshuggah and The Dillinger Escape Plan, but this doesn't really set the music apart from so much else either and that is also another major issue with regard to A Nihilistic Swarm. It simply sounds like so much else. Vermin do put a great deal of effort into providing their music with at sense of identity, but somehow they never succeed. The music never really seems to take off no matter how much I listen to it, but on the other hand it doesn't get any worse either. It just lies somewhere around the middle and doesn't really move too much out of the place. No doubt Vermin has some alright ideas, but unfortunately it never transfers into something appealing.

Lords Of Metal Webzine (NL, Dutch version)

By Koen

Published 01 June 2006

Rating: 80/100

Koen: Na een drietal nummers via de demo ‘Alea Iacta Est’ (2002) en een voltallige CD getiteld ‘Solypsis’ (2003) uitgebracht te hebben, is het vaderlandse death metal gezelschap Vermin in oktober 2004 de Excess Studio te Rotterdam (o.a. Severe Torture, Thanatos, Blo.Torch) ingedoken om ‘A Nihilistic Swarm’ op te nemen. Het heeft nog enige tijd geduurd voordat de heren een platencontract onder de neus gewreven kregen (bij het nieuwe en ambitieuze Deity Down Records), maar nu eindelijk kunnen we genieten van deze hevige geluidstrillingen.

De CD bevat een intro (‘The Swarm’), zestien nummers, een videoclip voor het nummer ‘Falling Deathwards’ en een kijkje achter de schermen bij de opnames. Ik ben er van overtuigd dat dit viertal (Pascal, drums; Ron, gitaar en achtergrondzang; Wolf, gitaar en Laurens, vocalen) ettelijke uren in de oefenruimte heeft doorgebracht want elk nummer is tot in de finesses uitgewerkt en goed gestructureerd. Ook weten de heren goed hun instrumenten te beheersen en als je van deze elementen een optelsommetje maakt weet je eigenlijk genoeg en dat is dat dit een speedy death metal schijfje is geworden dat voldoende afwisseling herbergt door de Meshuggah-achtige breaks die her en der zijn ingebouwd. De positie van bassist(e) is op het moment van schrijven van dit stukje nog vacant dus als jij denkt dat je de juiste persoon op de juiste plaats bent, aarzel dan niet om contact op te nemen met dit kwartet.

Lords Of Metal Webzine (NL, English version)

By Koen

Published 01 June 2006

Rating: 80/100

Koen: After a three song demo ‘Alea Iacta Est’ (2002) and a full-length called ‘Solypsis’ (2003), the Dutch death metal outfit Vermin decided to enter the Excess Studios in Rotterdam (Severe Torture, Thanatos, Blo.Torch to name a few) with the sole purpose of laying down the tracks for ‘A Nihilistic Swarm’ in October 2004. It took some time before the band inked a deal (with the fresh ambitious independent label Deity Down Records), but at last these recordings saw the light of day.

The disc contains an intro (‘The Swarm’), sixteen songs, a video for the ‘Falling Deathwards’ track as well as footage from the recording sessions. I’m convinced this group of four (Pascal, drums; Ron, guitars and backing vocals; Wolf, guitars and Laurens, vocals) spend an inconceivable quantity of rehearsal time because every song is highly structured and thought out thoroughly. The performers are very skilled as well, which makes this album a recommendation for aficionados of speedy death metal with some Meshuggah alike breaks hither and thither. Vermin are currently searching for a new bass player, so if you’re interested to fill in the vacant position, do not hesitate to drop these guys a line.

Rock Tribune Magazine (BE)

By Morbid Geert

Published Rock Tribune Magazine issue 51, June 2006

Rating: 81/100

Nederlands death metal scene is altijd al behoorlijk vruchtbaar geweest en met Vermin hebben ze er weer een sterke act bij. Dit is voer voor extreme death metalfans, gaande van Morbid Angel over Cryptopsy tot Cannibal Corpse. Het merendeel van de songs bevat heel wat blastbeatpassages, maar dat neemt niet weg dat er niet erg technisch gespeeld wordt, integendeel. Er is duidelijk nagedacht over de songstructuren en de heren goochelen graag met die springerige opbouw, want het geeft hen constant de mogelijkheid om hier en daar af te wijken van het rechtdoorzee-geram dat de rest van hun songs typeert. Hoe hun debuut “Solypsis” klonk is hier ten kantore niet geweten, maar met deze “A Nihilistic Swarm” vestigen zij wel meteen naam als een van de sterkste Nederlandse bands in hun stijl.

Burning Misery Webzine (NL, link no longer valid)

By Marco

Published 2006

Rating: 90/100

Ok time for a Dutch band called Vermin, a band that exist for 4 years now and is signed on the brand new label 'Deity Down records'. And hell fucking yeah this is a good start with Vermin and their 'A Nihilistic Swarm' album release. The short intro the brutality of this Dutch 4 headed band starts if you get hit I the face damn hard, blastbeats and great fucking guitar riffs is what these youngsters are blasting out of my speaker. Well these guys know what the hell they are doing, great deathmetal with a fucking great sound. Not only 17 deathmetal melodies on this album but also a nice looking graphic designed as you put this disk into your pc, it got an bonus video of the track 'Falling Deathwards' and a few shots in the studio while recording this cd. Also there is an overview with photo's about the making of the video, link to their website and an email contact. Well this is a great fucking disk guys with great stuff and this is definitely a recommendation to all you oldschool deathmetal and newer deathmetal freaks, Vermin got it all!! And for all the bass players who are reading this review: They are searching for a bass player!!! This cd has been released in may this year so run to your local record shop and grab this album I'm sure you like this shit!! See also the Deity Down records section here on Burning Misery.

The Metal Vault (USA, link no longer valid)

By Mark ‘RavenClaws’

Published 2006

Rating n/a

My first impression when I saw the cover of A Nihilistic Swarm, by Dutch death metalers Vermin, was the fact that it was probably a straight forward assault of standard riffing, vicious drumming and growling vocals. To my dismay, this is exactly what I got. How did I know this? Well, lets just say that my head has sustained more than enough hits of standard death metal throughout the years and I suppose I've developed a knack to identify it. Not to be confused with the Swedish incarnation under the same moniker, Vermin have no problems on what they set out to do with ANS... to totally pummel you with all the goodies that make up a death metal record and follow every instruction down to a tee. Does this make for a gem of a release? Well, lets see. As soon as this disk gets going, I notice that the sound seems to have just too much going on at once and it comes across as saturated and clogged. There is a definite feeling of atmosphere behind these songs, but too much of this seasoning weighs the sound down. Their style has an obvious touch of some of the 90's death metal outfits of the time such as Seance, Dissect, and Fleshcrawl, so they do a great job of duplicating them. So what does Vermin offer to us in the form of that special touch that only they can provide? Not much, except for the fact that they spice up an occasional song with some melodic breaks inserted here and there. This is very reminiscent of what Cannibal Corpse do in some of their material. Even though so far I am describing a very ordinary piece of work, it does not deny that Vermin can really pour it on and keep up with the best of them. The vocal attack is strong and brutal, but I would have really liked for it to have been much more dominant over the sound. This could have really made a major difference in keeping the listener more interested and the adrenaline to peak levels. It helped that the songs averaged at about the 3 minute range, because if not, I would for sure have dosed off. The downside to this quality is the fact that the tracks sound so much the same, I have real difficulty in telling the songs from one another. It seemed that these were actually 6 minutes songs that were chopped in half to beef up the track quantity. For a death metal album this would hover around the average mark, but it by no means garners a bad rating. There was some extra points given for the video of 'Falling Deathwards' included because it gives us a chance to see this brigade in action. This is some decent stuff that will get your blood flowing, but sticking to the fuckers that always seem to know how to envelope the listener with uncanny flare (Morbid Angel, Cannibal Corpse, Deicide) would be your best bet. Hey, you could do much worse that this, so this is not a total loss. Try to picture this, if I was at a concert watching these guys, I would be on the sidelines with my arms crossed with a very slight bob to my head with a solid, stolid look. Am I clear?

Pull The Chain Webzine (BE)

By Steph

Published July 2006

Rating: n/a

Formed in April 2002, Holland’s own Vermin have released two demos over the years and finally bring us their first full-length. 17 Tracks of (almost) nonstop blastbeat for a total time of 48 minutes.I’m not used to such short tracks when it comes to brutal Death Metal, but with such speed and intensity, it’s quite a good idea. If Vermin seem to have developed a real passion for ultrafast songwriting, they can be proud of their incredible tightness. The four-piece (they’re still looking for a bassplayer) unleash their fury on every track preventing the listener from breathing and leading to some claustrophobic feelings. Fortunately, most riffs sound clear enough and ain’t muffled by the drumming insanity. Vermin add some progressive sounds and atmospheres here and there which could be considered as the band’s trademark if they were more numerous. I wish there were more « slow » parts, since they really shred and vocals could also benefit from more diversity, but they’re rather intense anyway.Ultrafast Death Metal might not be my favourite style, but Vermin show they’re one of those up-and-coming bands with an incredible potential, trying to add their own touch to the genre. This first full-length is beyond spectacular!

Possessed Webzine (DE, link no longer valid)

By Meden

Published July 2006

Rating: n/a

Ja, hallo, Vermin, Vermin, das kommt mir doch so bekannt vor. Nee, nicht die Schweden, ach so, war mir auch vorher klar, weil ich ja schon lange mit den Niemalsweltmeister in Kontakt stehe.Logisch, sprechen wir hier über Holländer, was denn sonst,hehe. 17 Songs auf einer CD, das ist doch mal was. kräftig unterstützt werden sie von dem Label " Deity Down Records". Im Moment noch zu viert ( sind auf Bassersuche), versohlen sie uns ganz gut den Hosenboden und zwar auf deathmetallische Art. Die Einflüsse sind klar erkennbar.Schnell und technisch muss es sein. Bands wie Cannibal Corpse, Hate Eternal, Morbid Angel, Cryptopsy, aber auch Immolation oder Incantation sind rauszuhören. Dieses reichte den Vierer aber noch nicht,nee,nee, sie müssen noch Progressivität hereinbringen. Und das ist gut so. Besonders im Ryyhtmiksektor muss man noch Messhugah als großen Einfluss nennen. Gut geamchter, technischer und progressiver Old School Death Metal. Der Sänger hat ein schönes altes Grunzorgan und versucht, diese mit Screams zu erweitern. Aber irgendwie klingen die Drumsparts teilweise sehr rumpelig, was den Hörgenuss nicht gearde fördert. Ich mag diese Scheibe trotzdem und Songs wie "The Plague" dürfen live gut knallen. Einfach schöner alter Death Metal mit modernen Einflüssen. Death Metal Freaks sollten sich dieses Ding unbedingt mal nahören, keine Frage.

Hyperblast Universe (ID, link no linger valid)

By Ferly

Published 2006

Rating: 10/10

Death metal musick is like an empty plate these days and there so many bands using this plate as basic for another plate which have enough food on it. One of Netherland's death metal outfit is Vermin, they have lot of blast beats and general old school riffs as the 1st blank plate...add with some of high tech and complexity in the vein of Dillinger Escape Plan as the 2nd plate, the result is multiple piece of strong brutal death metal album under the title ' A Nihilistic Swarm '...17 tracks enhanced with video from one of their big list offer ' Falling Deathwards '. Vermin has create new freshy folder of death metal huge files, blast their way into the scene with torturous musick yet innovative through very long journey of enigmatic ferocity. Best tracks : 7./ I Am The Dissident 9./ A Nihilist 16./ Clipped Wings.

Choking On Bile Webzine (NL, link no longer valid)

By Jona Roovers

Published 2006

Rating: 3/5

Ik meen me te herinneren dat Vermin lang op zoek was naar een nieuw bandlid, maar in de bio kom ik hierover niets tegen, dus ik zal wel abuis zijn. Na twee nummers intro begint de CD pas echt, maar op een totaal van zeventien tracks kun je dat best maken natuurlijk. Oerdegelijke en nogal old-school getinte death metal brengt dit ongedierte je, en al gebruiken we de term old-school behoorlijk vaak op deze site, is het echt overduidelijk dat Vermin goed naar bands van een jaar of tien geleden geluisterd heeft. Vooral Cannibal Corpse is niet ongemerkt voorbijgegaan (neem de bandnaam alleen al), maar gelukkig blijft het bij knipogen. Waar de in de biografie genoemde progressieve elementen zitten is mij volstrekt onduidelijk, want de muziek is zo recht-toe-recht-aan en conservatief als het maar zijn kan! Evenmin kan ik invloeden van Hate Eternal, Morbid Angel, Cryptopsy, Immolation, Deranged, Meshuggah of Dillinger Escape Plan terughoren, maar het zullen wel gewoon bands zijn waar ze graag naar luisteren. Vrij lang aangehouden riffs, logische structuren en soepele overgangen, voorzien van een stampende ritmesectie plus een diepe droge grunt en gebalanceerde productie vormen een solide maar tevens wat saai album. De drums zijn in de snellere delen niet altijd even strak, maar dat is evenmin echt storend. Waar ik gaandeweg het album wel tegenaan hik is dat de nummers zich maar moeilijk van elkaar onderscheiden. Het totale gebrek aan onverwachte breakdowns of grooves, bijvoorbeeld een akoestisch stukje of gitaarsolo, even gas terugnemen of de ruimte scheppen voor een mooie melodie, valt wel erg op na de kleine vijftig minuten. Grappig hoe het nummer ´Deviate´ eindigt in een kleine venijnige drumsolo en zo een naadloze overgang naar het volgende nummer vormt, maar dit is een van de weinige, opvallende momenten van de CD en het gebrek aan afwisseling, ook in het bereik van de gitaarriffs, maakt dit voor mij een hele zit.

Metalstorm Webzine (EE)

By Herzebeth

Published 29 August 2006

Rating: 78/100

Well this is going to be an easy review to write actually; the music in this album is so direct and in-your-face that I won't even need to charge my brain or my review with all those portentous words about ostentatious matters; hell no! I'll just write about the intensity and the brutal scheme of this album.

Vermin is quite simple to describe, they play Death Metal…yeah that was almost obvious considering the name or the cover. Anyway, so long for the short explanation, now I'll try harder for those seeking knowledge with my reviews. This Dutch outfit is heavily influenced by the old school to begin with (patterns and structures), they finally add some new school riffs to the mix to finally create an heterogeneous metal product with technical brushstrokes here and there; think Grave and Morbid Angel jamming with Sinister and Houwitser for a slight example.

This album sounds quite good really; I'm mostly impressed for their assembling capabilities, this because most of the tracks managed to sound practiced to the core and arranged from the beginning to the very end (feature lost in most bands nowadays). The music sounds hard as hell and even brutal at times, the performance is rather impressive (but rigid at times), the music makes you want to kick someone in the mouth and the lyrics actually will make you think (WOW!!, now that's a breakthrough for the new-scene), last but not least the album comes with a great layout and a killer multimedia enhancement with a video, a small "studio" documentary, some pictures and a couple of useful links.

So what's the problem with Vermin? Almost none, the band hooked me for the first twelve tracks, but, even though it's a decent extent (talking about minutes of course), seventeen tracks is way too much for my taste; I was really impressed with the first half-hour, but then I just wanted to hear something else and I don't even know the reason why because the music throughout the entire album is quite good…These guys are actually going somewhere, I'll be waiting for a polished album with better riffs, catchy breakdowns and complex songwriting, then I'll start talking about their greatness.

Best Tracks: "Ascend", "I Am The Dissident", "Clipped Wings".

POBsessie (NL)

By Twan Sibon

Published POBsessie, een uitgave van Poporganisatie Breda, issue 55, August 2006

Rating: n/a

Metal-fans uit de regio Breda/Roosendaal/Etten-Leur kennen deze band misschien al. Vermin staat sinds 2002 onder de bezielende leiding van Ron (gitaar) en brengt in hetzelfde jaar de 3 track demo 'Alia Iacta Est' uit. Inmiddels de smaak te pakken, laat de band in 2003 hun debuut genaamd 'Solypsis' verschijnen. Hierop is de kwaliteit van de band al goed te ontdekken. Aangespoord door de optredens, reviews en reacties besluit Vermin het professioneel aan te pakken en vertrekt in 2004 naar de Excess Studio om zelf 'A Nihilistic Swarm' op te nemen. Na het vinden van een label, het Bredase Deity Down Records, komt het album uit in mei 2006. Maar ja, wat kun je verwachten van deze schijf? Vette en brute Deathmetal, mensen! Zestien tracks (intro niet meegerekend), die qua uitstraling niet onderdoen voor grote buitenlandse namen (Meshuggah, Immolation of Hate Eternal). Het is niet alleen blind naar voren rammen en hopen op zoveel mogelijk slachting. Regelmatig is er ruimte voor een break, voor een tempowisseling of onderliggende melodiewisselingen. De drums hakken lekker, gooien er regelmatig een versnelling bij en combineren Death- met Thrash-rhythms. De vocalen koman ver van beneden, maar zijn nog te volgen en af en toe komen er high screams voorbij. Het guitaarspel gaat vingervlug en stopt verschillende riffs in een song met een enkele leadpartij. Na deze cd een aantal malen beluisterd te hebben kan ik alleen maar zeggen: chapeau! Het is gewoon een krachtige plaat met afwisseling en genoeg elementen om zelf te ontdekken. Zeker gaan luisteren en dan gewoon kopen. En als bonus staat er ook een 'making of...'-video op, kun je de band ook aan het werk zien. Topprodukt uit Brabant.

Carnage Deathmetal Webzine (DE)

By Leif Timm

Published 2006

Rating: 70/100

Und mal wieder neues Futter aus den Niederlanden, die vielleicht der eine oder andere auf dem FTC gesehen hat?! VERMIN existieren seit April 2002 und konnten es zuvor auf ein Demo („Alea Lacta Est“; 2002) und eine Scheibe („Solypsis“; 2003) bringen. Geboren recht fetter brutaler Death Metal, der sich irgendwo zwischen new und old school liegt und grob an Bands wie NILE, DERANGED und HATE ETERNAL liegt. Zwar haben die Jungs nicht den Blast von HE, können aber vom Riffing ein paar Einflüsse mit einbauen. Manchmal erinnert's aber auch an DERANGED, wobei mich insgesamt die Scheibe am meisten an NILE erinnert, da auch VERMIN die fetten tragenden Mid-Tempo Parts haben. Teilweise kommt mir die Scheibe etwas zu drucklos vor, was vielleicht daran liegt, dass VERMIN zur Zeit keinen Bassisten haben? Trotzdem eine wirklich coole Scheibe, die mir zwar stellenweise etwas zu langsam ist, aber gerade von der Riffabteilung hier doch schon das eine oder andere Fett Riff hingelegt wird. Kann man auf jeden Fall mal anchecken!

Legacy Magazine (DE)

By UI

Published Legacy Magazin, issue 44, September/October 2006

Rating: 11/15

Eine sehr angenehme Überraschung, die uns VERMIN aus den Niederlanden hier mit ihrem Debüt-Album kredenzen: Sie selbst verorten sich stilistisch so passend wie konsequent in der Nähe von Filigran-Barbaren wie Cannibal Corpse, können aber auch hysterisch-hymnische Deicide-Reminiszenzen, sowie den Einfluss älterer Sinister auf die Gitarrenarbeit nicht von sich weisen. Erstklassige Referenzen also, die sich im typischen US-Death der Jungs entdecken lassen, wobei hier lobenswerterweise niemals der Song zu Gunsten eines Virtuositäts-Show-Offs geopfert wird. Die Musik von VERMIN verbreitet, passend zum Bandnamen ('Ungeziefer'), eine seltsam wimmelnde, insektoide Aura, die sich in einer nahezu chitinösen Eckigkeit äußert und die massiv strömenden Spannungsbögen der Songs komplimentiert, ja, aufwertet. Man höre sich hierzu etwa 'Fuel For The Flames' an, so rasend und stochernd, wie verschachtelt und dabei jederzeit faszinierend und eingängig. Oder das atmosphärische 'Birth', das sich nach malmendem Beginn zu einem Down-Tempo-Groover steigert und nahtlos und schlüssig in den Kracher 'A Nihilist' mündet. Bemerkenswert auch das so brutal bolzende wie buttrig ins Ohr gehende 'Falling Deathwards', das auch als Video-Clip auf dem Album zu finden ist - so muss ambitionierter und intelligenter Death Metal sein. Die Produktion tönt sehr ungekünstelt und könnte vielleicht eine Idee transparenter klingen, doch wirklichen Grund zur Klage gibt es soundtechnisch nicht. Mittlerweile hat die Band einen anderen Sänger, was nur ein Grund mehr dafür ist, die Niederländer bei der nächstmöglichen Gelegenheit live zu begutachten, um herauszufinden, wie der neue Mann das hier dargebotene, nahezu durchweg beeindruckende Material umsetzt.

Zware Metalen Webzine (NL)

By Renee van der Ster

Published 04 September 2006

Rating: 84/100

Het wil de laatste anderhalf jaar wel met de brutal deathmetal releases in Nederland: De liefhebbers van het genre hebben kennis kunnen maken met bijvoorbeeld Arsebreed maar ook de nieuwe Prostitute Disfigurement kwam als geroepen. Gelukkig blijft het hier niet bij en steekt Vermin dit jaar ook de kop op. Na lang in de Excess Studio's te Rotterdam rondgehangen te hebben en zich aangesloten te hebben bij Deity Down Records is het tweede album, getiteld A Nihilistic Swarm, dan eindelijk een feit. Tijdens de show op Fuck The Commerce IX kreeg men al de eer om een aantal nummers van deze nieuwe plaat live te horen, wat de nieuwsgierigheid natuurlijk alleen maar wist te bevorderen.

"Progressive" zou een belangrijk ingrediënt moeten zijn volgens de biografie van de band. Zo op het eerste gezicht lijkt dit een vrij zinloze kreet als je de heren van Vermin slechts kent van hun liveperformance. Al vrij snel valt het op dat de grunt van zanger Laurens een stuk minder rauw klinkt dan live, waardoor de gehele lading van de muziek op cd intenser en zwaarder de gehoorgangen binnen walst. Persoonlijk heb ik dus even moeten wennen aan de sound op cd, maar wat deze heren op hun tweede album te bieden hebben is buitengewoon verrassend en uitdagend in elkaar gezet. Logge death als de basis wordt uiterst subtiel gecombineerd met stampwerk zoals we dat kennen van Meshuggah, gewaagd tegendraads gitaarspel en dat binnen één nummer diverse tempo's. Alsof je aan een rally deelneemt, waar je continu in de hoogste versnelling rijdt, nooit terugschakelt, maar waar het toerental wél heftig schommelt. Het Vermin motorblok is vermoedelijk één van de weinigen die dit aankan.

Vermin heeft met deze plaat een geweldige stap gezet en laat ons kennis maken met hun genoemde "progressive brutal death." Progressiviteit, die niet het gezicht vormt van de muziek, maar juist de contouren ervan op eigenzinnige wijze verscherpt. Voorlopig zal de band nog even zonder bassist moeten voortbestaan, maar ik zal het niet geheel onwaarschijnlijk vinden als de heren in staat zijn om hun sound interessant te houden zonder (gezien de band onlangs heeft bewezen live heerlijk uit de verf te kunnen komen met dit 'gebrek').

Vomit Zine (FR, link no longer valid)

By unknown

Published 11 September 2006

Rating: n/a

“A Nihilistic Swarm” is the first album from VERMIN, and with this first album, the band comes with 17 tracks (including an intro) for almost 50 minutes of Brutal Death Metal. All we can say is that VERMIN pay attention to unleash a complete release and not only a 20 minutes album like a lot of bands are doing nowadays! Well, musically VERMIN is about raw and crushing Brutal Death Metal in the vein of HOUWITSER, SINISTER and DERANGED, with some other influences coming also from ABORTED and similar bands, and MORBID ANGEL. The sound is rather raw, and it makes the whole album rather massive, something like right in your face! A very good release you could say, but finally I think a weak point of the band / album is the lack of originality, even if some weird sonorities and twisted riffs can be heard here and there. The band call it as a progressive twist, and yes, there’s some original elements in the album, but the whole stuff definitely sounds too common. I think a 2nd full length release with more polished tracks and a more powerful sound could give a masterpiece of brutality, but here, even if “A Nihilistic Swarm” is not a bad album, of course, I really can’t say this is a masterpiece. Good first album, that’s all.

Unchained Magazine (RS, link no longer valid)

By Independor

Published Unchained Magazine August 2006

Rating: n/a

Vermin is death metal band from Netherland. This is their newest release with very good design. Not only high quality cover but also a multimedia CD containing two videos, one is making of video “Swarm” and a video for song “Falling Deathwards” and all done in very professional way. For the music well death metal with some avant-garde influences, good production all packed in seventeen songs of brutality. For fans of death metal I say that this is a good release.

Benzoworld Webzine (IT)

By Atheist

Published 27 September 2006

Rating: 75/100

Veloce. Brutale. Preciso. Tecnico. Death metal. Né più né meno. L'originalità non è l'obiettivo principale dei Vermin, ciononostante, tra echi di Morbid Angel, tecnicismi di scuola Schuldiner e brutalità floridiana, questi simpatici olandesi riescono a creare un sound avvincente, personale quanto basta e maledettamente “in your face”, cosa che sono sicuro farà la felicità dei deathster più legati alla vecchia scuola. Dopo l'intro 'The Swarm' (citazione dal film?) e la grindata strumentale di 'The Plague', i nostri calano il primo asso con 'Ascend' splendido esempio di malvagità in musica, con sfuriate degne dei Malevolent Creation alternate a riff più cadenzati, figli illegittimi della scena Death europea. Nella successiva 'Fuel For The Flames' le influenze grind fanno nuovamente capolino, mentre in 'Conquer' la ferocia di fondo si abbina a riff molto più moderni, che donano al pezzo un tiro invidiabile. Spaventoso in questo senso il lavoro del drummer Pascal, violentissimo sempre e comunque, ma senza sbavature od imprecisioni: impressionante. Altro pezzo da novanta, 'Clipped Wings' lascia filtrare alcuni sprazzi di Math-core di meshugghiana memoria, specie intorno al minuto 1:30, quando la band si esibisce in alcuni stop/start che sembrano fatti apposta per minare la salute mentale dell'ascoltatore, così come, poco più tardi, una spiazzante apertura melodica che (non mi bottiglino i più intransigenti) mi ha ricordato 'The Death & Resurrection Show' dei Killing Joke. Senza dubbio il pezzo migliore del cd. E i difetti? Per quanto io ne abbia cercati, l'unico che mi viene inmente è l'eccessiva lunghezza, 17 tracce sono decisamente troppe per un album Death/Grind di questo tipo, con l'ovvio calo di attenzione da parte dell'ascoltatore dopo la decima traccia. Forse è per questo che si è scelto di relegare 'Clipped Wings' inpenultima posizione, in un disperato tentativo (opinabile) di mantetnere alta l'attenzione. Promossi sicuramente, ma confido in album più sintetici, in futuro. Canzoni consigliate: Ascend, Fuel For The Flames, Conquer, Clipped Wings.

Metal Impact Webzine (FR)

By Warloghe

Published 28 September 2006

Rating: 3/5

VERMIN est un groupe de Death Metal classique. Les quatre musiciens viennent des Pays Bas et leurs influences principales sont des plus classiques : CANNIBAL CORPSE, HATE ETERNAL, MORBID ANGEL, CRYPTOPSY, IMMOLATION ou encore DERANGED… jusque là toujours classique… mais cela devient plus intéressant lorsque l’on sent la grande influence d’un groupe comme MESHUGGAH sur le combo batave.

Pour en arriver à ce résultat, cela a demandé beaucoup de préparation, et à croire le site Internet du groupe, les répétitions ont lieu 4 fois par semaine ! Forcement le niveau technique s’en ressent et les idées sont travaillées et complexes. Le groupe a eu quelques problèmes de stabilisation de line-up suite au départ de leur chanteur en mai 2004 pour cause de manque d’intérêt dans le Death Metal.

Après l’enregistrement de quelques démos, A Nihilistic Swarm est le premier véritable opus longue durée de VERMIN. Longue durée, on peut le dire car sachant que la durée moyenne des albums de Death Brutal est de 30 minutes pour 8 ou 9 titres, ici le groupe propose 17 morceaux (dont une intro) pour près de 50 minutes de musique barbare. Le son est relativement cru, et il rend l'album entier très massif et compact, quelque chose comme une droite en pleine face !

Musicalement et techniquement, ce disque est très bien fait et plaira aux amateurs du genre, mais ce qui est dommage est le manque d’originalité. Le groupe n’arrive pas à se déceler une véritable personnalité mais soyons clément, c’est seulement leur premier opus… il y a quand même quelques sonorités inattendues, des riffs grinçants (« Collapsed Future Visions ») et un morceau particulièrement remarquable : « Fuel For The Flames » décoiffant de brutalité et de technique.

VERMIN ne révolutionne rien, et ce n’est pas les quelques apartés et clins d’œil au progressif qui vont faire avancer les choses. Son Brutal Death reprend les vielles formules qui ont déjà fait leur preuve. Reste à ajouter des éléments plus personnels et une petite touche de folie furieuse. Au final, on a du classique de chez classique, les espoirs du début de l’album s’estompent au fur et à mesure des morceaux.

Chile Metal Webzine (CL, link no longer valid)

By Rodrigo Moreno

Published 04 October 2006

Rating: n/a

Si alguna vez tuviste la idea de encontrar una banda que uniera las características de bandas como Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel y Meshuggah entre otras. Pues bien, aquí tienes ese resultado. Vermin, banda Holandesa que realiza un Death Metal con ciertas reminiscencias progresivas. Vermin, sale a la escena a mediados del 2002, tras la disolución de The Mess Age, y ya tienen a su a ver dos demos, un larga duración y ahora nos presentan su nuevo material llamado “A Nihilistic Swarm”, que está constituida por 17 canciones de muy buena factoría y un aceptable sonido. La banda, maneja fuertemente las directrices del death metal, donde podemos encontrar punteos tipo Morbid Angel, Hate Eternal, y percusiones que apunta en dirección a bandas como Immolation. La brutal voz de Laurens en conjunto con Ron (Guitarrista y coro) hace una buena mezcla de tonos vocales. Además de los 17 temas, este cd contiene una sección de multimedia, la cual está conformada por un video clip del tema “Falling Deathwards” y el Making Off de la grabación de “A Nihilistic Swarm”.

Live XS Magazine (NL)

By PB

Published Live XS Magazine, Year 9, issue 10, October 2006, page 34

Rating: n/a

De brute death metal van het Bredase Vermin wist op hun demo nog niet volledig te overtuigen maar met deze debuut-cd hebben ze zichzelf waarlijk overtroffen. De op Amerikaanse death metal geïnspireerde songs knallen werkelijk uit de speakers, en met de wiskundige benadering van de composities laten de heren horen dat er goed is nagedacht over deze maar liefst zeventien tracks tellende cd. Beste headbanger, wanneer jij bands zoals Morbid Angel, Suffocation of The Dillinger Escape Plan tot je favorieten rekent, moet je deze cd zeker een kans geven. Opgenomen in de Excess-studio maakt dat de plaat als een huis staat en naast de audiotracks is er ook een multimediagedeelte met clips aanwezig. Een cd waar Vermin trots op kan zijn.

Minpunt: in totaal iets te lang

Pluspunt: Doordachte songs

Nedermetaal Webzine (NL, link no longer valid)

By Deathmelz

Published 14 September 2006

Rating: 77/100

Dat de heren van 'Vermin' het met A Nihilistic Swarm rigoureus en bijna professioneel hebben aangepakt is duidelijk. Een dikke CD met 17 tracks, strak artwork en – wat een verrassing! – een stukje interactieve media. Dat laatste ontdekte ik toen ik de CD in mijn computer stopte in de hoop hem af te kunnen spelen, wat helaas niet direct lukte vanwege de drammerige autoplayfunctie van de CD-Rom.

Persoonlijk ben ik niet zo weg van extra menu's en materiaal op CD's, tenzij het echt de moeite waard is en het daadwerkelijk iets toevoegt aan de release. En dan nog zie ik het extra materiaal persoonlijk het liefst op een apart schijfje. Het extra materiaal op de Vermin CD bestaat onder andere uit een videoclip (Falling Deathwards), een zooi foto's van het maken van de clip en een viedoverslagje van de opnames in de Excess studio's in Rotterdam. Leuk op zich, maar helaas niet echt sprankelend materiaal in mijn ogen: het zag er wat gemaakt uit, niet echt spontaan. De zwaarheid en complexiteit van de muziek had me namelijk anders doen verwachten.

Want A Nihilistic Swarm is geen plaat die je eenvoudig tussen neus en lippen door wegbangt. De stijl van Vermin's muziek houdt het midden tussen die van 'Cannibal Corpse' en 'Vile' met hier en daar een verdwaald mespuntje metalcore in het ritmegebruik. Via de koptelefoon hoor je dat er zo hier en daar leuke dingen op de achtergrond gebeuren (extra vocals, industriële en soms uiterst gore samples). Bruut laag borrelend beukwerk en wervelende, kolkende riffs wisselen elkaar genadeloos af: te gekke experimenten te over binnen een bekend aanvoelend geheel. Het gevoel dat ze live neerzetten wordt op de CD goed vertolkt.

De nummers hebben stuk voor stuk absoluut een goede opbouw met verrassende wendingen. Helaas zijn er toch een paar dingen die ervoor zorgen dat ik niet direct zo enthousiast ben als de meeste andere reviewers op het grote internet. Op de eerste plaats: 17 nummers is wat veel. Delen van nummers worden iets te vaak herhaald – zo lijkt het – waardoor de neiging tot doorzappen zich zo nu en dan voordoet. Iets minder had best gemogen. Daarnaast: scheve tonen en dissonanten zijn natuurlijk volledig de bom binnen dit genre, een vals tegen het nummer inploinkende bas (Fuel For The Flames en ook in het begin en eind van Scientific Domination) is dat niet. Mocht het artistiek zo bedoeld zijn: zo kwam het tot mijn spijt niet op mij over.

Al met al is A Nihilistic Swarm een volwassen schijf met ballen. Ik hoop dat de heren hun koers nog iets scherper weten af te bakenen in de toekomst zodat ze op komende schijven nog meer verpletteren. Rek uit die nekhaarmomenten, knallen!

Boudisque Website (NL)

By Martin

Published 06 October 2006

Rating: n/a

This is great brutal blasting US styled death metal (DEEDS OF FLESH, BRODEQUIN), from Holland, with some progressive elements as heard earlier in releases by bands such as MESHUGGAH and GORGUTS! A cool combination, that nicely can be experienced through a great production (Excess Studios)! Pounding Dutch brutality! (METAL TIP).

Archaic Magazine (NL)

By Dave Waite

Published 17 October 2006

Rating: n/a

Formed in 2002, this Dutch five-piece known as Vermin have been working incredibly hard in delivering you lucky sods some mighty fine brutal death metal. Influenced by the likes of Cannibal Corpse, Hate Eternal, Deranged, Meshuggah and The Dillinger Escape Plan they pack a punch others can only dream of, successfully combining the brutal with the progressive in one furious blast. ‘A Nihilistic Swarm’ is the bands second full length released by the up and coming Deity Down Records so lets turn up the volume and see what the band have to offer this time around.

Featuring a rabid fuckfest of down-tuned, bestial riffing, gravel-throated roars and a percussive drive akin to having your head caved in for eternity, Holland’s Vermin are here to serve you with a very tasty platter of some mighty fine brutal/progressive death metal. Doing nothing particularly refreshing in terms of bringing anything new to the genre, ‘A Nihilistic Swarm’ is simply what it is; fast, technical, a tad progressive and uncompromisingly brutal. The constantly changing riffs showcase the level of talent on display here and give a distinguished air to each of the 17 tracks on offer here. Whilst the production isn’t exactly what you’d call outstanding, there is enough variation and dynamic within this album to warrant Vermin as a force to be reckoned with in the death metal underground. The track ‘A Nihilist’ in particular proves that there is more to this band than meets the eye, with it’s almost Akercocke-esque progressiveness and screamed backing vocals mixed in with the otherwise unrelenting death metal fury. Although Vermin have a long way to go before they are up there amongst the genres best, ‘A Nihilistic Swarm’ shows a huge array of talent that you could do a lot worse than to check out. If you like your death metal both bold and brutal then get this before the Vermin get you.

Anubis Zine (TR)

By unknown

Published November 2006

Rating: n/a

Our event is USA Brutal Death M. This is the second album of these 4 maniacs from Holland and it was out in 2006. If we talk about tracks, they are a bit short but 17 tracks certainly satisfy you! Sounds like Hate Eternal – Immolation and a bit Meshuggah. I think now you have an idea about Vermin. Tracks are technical, fluent and energetic! Also you will find a video clip named “Falling Deathwards”, band photos, video of these guys while they are working, web & mail addresses etc. In it. I recommend it to all Underground Death M. fans, you don’t regret!

Favorite Tracks: Deviate & Scientific Future Visions & Fuel For The Flames.

Stylus Magazine (USA)

By Cosmo Lee

Published 31 October 2006

Rating: n/a

This is technical death metal from the Netherlands, and it's done absolutely right. The influence of Suffocation looms heavily here, but in a good way. From the masters, Vermin has learned the importance of switching tempos. Thus, there are plenty of the requisite blastbeats, but they're balanced by slower sections with various feels. In fact, some of the grooves near the end are positively Meshuggah-esque. The guitar work is interesting throughout, with cool left-right tradeoffs and hammer-on trills. The recording is a bit sterile; a lot of care obviously went into the production, and perhaps it's a little too careful, but it sounds good overall. This is the first release from Deity Down, and the label has gone all-out, adding two videos (including a making-of documentary) and a picture gallery to the CD. The videos are somewhat primitive, with cheesy editing, but they help the material come alive, and it's always neat to see the studio process. Hopefully there's more to come from both the label and band.

316 Productions (USA)

By Mike SOS

Published 10 October 2006

Rating: n/a

Dutch death metal act Vermin play with the kind of volatile yet complex heaviness that much of today’s progressive death metal acts utilize. On A NIHILISTIC SWARM, the brutality factor is cranked up to 11 on cuts like “Eyes Wide Shut” and “Ascend”, as this quartet’s ruthless restlessness doesn’t allow for much time to get your bearing before they blast you again. Displaying a technically sound style with touches of Cannibal Corpse-esque volatility on tracks like the clobbering “The Plague” and “Vertigo”, Vermin should appease those that enjoy their music to solicit a good beating or two.

Metal District Webzine (DE)

By Mr. Vandemar

Published 11 January 2007

Rating: 70/100

Es ist immer angenehm, wenn es einem Rezensenten mal leicht gemacht wird, man sich nicht über hanebüchene neue Bezeichnungen der Unterschublade, des Subgenres, des exotischen Nebenzweiges von metallischer Spielart XY den Kopf zerbrechen muss. Bei dem vorliegenden Silberling „A Nihilistic Swarm“ der aus den Niederlanden stammenden VERMIN ist das nämlich ganz einfach. Hier wird Death Metal gespielt, ohne Umschweife, ungeschönt und verdammt nochmal mitten in die Fresse.

Aber gehen wir doch etwas mehr ins Detail: Was hier erbarmungslos aus den Boxen brettert ist kaum überhörbar sehr von der guten alten Schule des Death geprägt. Es fällt einem recht schnell MORBID ANGEL und Co. ein, generell ist die ziemlich harte Schiene mitte der 90er recht präsent und wäre „A Nihilistic Swarm“ vor gut zehn Jahren erschienen hätte das gute Stück wohl für ordentlich Furore gesorgt. Garniert mit dem ein oder anderen moderneren Element, gerade bezüglich des Riffings, sowie schon fast technischen Frickel-Passagen macht die Scheiblette aber auch Anfang des dritten Jahrtausends ziemlich Spaß. Blastbeats, Riffgewitter und Basslinien, alles solide und den Hirnkasten zermarternd eingespielt bei einer zumindest angemessenen Produktion. Weitere Pluspunkte gibt es für die Multimedia-Sektion auf der CD, die neben dem Videoclip zu „Falling Deathwards“ auch eine kurze Doku zum Aufnahmeprozess und das ein oder andere Goodie enthält.

Schwächen finden sich aber auch, denn nach einer Weile erweist sich das Songwriting als etwas unflexibel und auch wenn es das mangels Bassisten auf ein Quartett zusammengeschrumpfte Häuflein Todesbleianhänger sicher gut gemeint hat, sind 17 Songs schlicht und ergreifend zu viel. Zum letzten Viertel hin stellt sich doch etwas Langeweile ein, denn es kommt nichts mehr, dass die Aufmerksamkeit des Hörers erneut fesseln kann.

Dennoch kann sich VERMIN nach zwei Demos mit seinem Debüt zufrieden zeigen, und wenn sich die Jungs ein wenig entwickeln könnte aus dem Verein durchaus eine feste Größe im eher traditionellen Death Metal werden.

Empire Of Death Webzine (IT)

By Kratos

Published 2007

Rating: 77/100

Ecco un altro gruppo olandese da tenere sotto stretta osservazione, perché questi giovanotti hanno tutte le carte in regola per far parlare (bene) di sé in un prossimo futuro. Di chi sto parlando? Dei Vermin, giunti con questo “A Nihilistic Swarm” al secondo full-lenght da studio, secondo disco che farà sicuramente breccia nei cuori dei deathster amanti del metallo della morte più puro ed oltranzista. Niente voci femminili né campionamenti di ogni sorta, nessuna concessione alla melodia o a espedienti come cori o tastiere pompose: solo purissimo death metal spezzacollo di matrice soprattutto americana. Per comprendere appieno la proposta dei Vermin sappiate che le maggiori influenze risultano Morbid Angel (in primis), Sinister e persino i Grave degli ultimi due dischi. Un mix di influenze veramente niente male, che permette al quintetto olandese di sciorinare una serie di brani sempre molto vari e dai numerosi cambi di tempo e di umore: raramente ci si annoia durante l’ascolto di “A Nihilistic Swarm”, in quanto i ragazzi sono in possesso di capacità compositive veramente buone e, fortunatamente, si dimostrano abbastanza ispirati dal variare la proposta quel tanto che basta per non fossilizzarsi sempre sulle stesse soluzioni. Niente di trascendentale sia chiaro, e niente che farà gridare al miracolo per fantasia o innovazione, ma i Vermin hanno dalla loro un paio di assi nella manica di tutto rispetto. In primo luogo il tasso tecnico è abbastanza alto, e questo permette al combo olandese di lanciarsi in ottimi cambi di tempo e in riff abbastanza intricati; in secondo luogo il songwriting e le capacità in fase di arrangiamento fanno sì che nascano brani in genere accattivanti e che pestano a dovere. Infine la grande passione per il death metal più duro e puro rende i Vermin di “A Nihilistic Swarm” il gruppo perfetto per passare un po’ di minuti all’insegna del metallo della morte più classico e spaccagengive che ci sia.

Bruview Webzine (DE)

By Colonel

Published 27 December 2006

Rating: 70/100

"Progressiv-brutalen Death Metal" schimpft man sich heute schon bald einmal gern, denn ohne jene präfigierten Adjektiven schafft man oftmals gar nicht einmal, Interesse zu wecken - doch ab und an täuscht eine gute Schublade auch nicht über löchrige Socken hinweg: VERMIN machen es sich nach eigenen Worten gern in jener Lade gemütlich, nennen neben MORBID ANGEL auch CRYPTOPSY, MESHUGGAH und DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN als Bezugspunkte. Doch - so meine ich - sollte man etwas kürzer treten, bei seinen Leisten bleiben und jene auch mit Stolze präsentieren - denn: Auch wenn das holländische Quartett durchaus technisches Raffinesse zelebriert und Feinheiten huldigt, so wäre es in meinen Augen doch leidlich vermessen, sich in derart große Schuhe zu stecken.

Vielmehr lässt "The Bleeding" ab und an durchblicken, öfters rotiert zu sein, auch DERANGED dürften neuerdings nicht allzu weit von VERMIN entfernt ihre Fingerspiele üben, und vielleicht auch hat man Erik Rutan des öfteren gebannt auf die Finger geschaut: "A nihilistic swarm" wäre - wenn ein gutes Jahrzehnt früher auf den Markt gekommen - wohl in einem Atemzug zu oben genannter Langrille der Kannibalen und beispielsweise MORBID ANGELs "Covenant" zu nennen; Ein hervorragendes Wechselspiel aus den von "Bleeding" bestens bekannten Frickelparts sowie drückendem, aber dennoch nicht sinnlos polternden Blastbeat, welcher zwar weit hinter DISAVOWED und Co. zurückbleibt, dafür sein punktgenaues Ziel zu keinem Zeitpunkte verfehlt.

VERMIN haben ihren Stil nach einer Existenz von vier Jahren und zweier Demos ("Alea Iacta Est" sowie "Solypsis") als Arbeitsgrundlage gefunden - und auch, wenn man sich in der Eigendefinition zu übermäßig auf die Schulter klopft: Das Endprodukt spricht für sich, auch eine gewisse Geradlinigkeit, ein Auffrischen alter Glanztaten hat seine Werte, und mit "A nihilistic swarm" ist auf jeden Fall eine befriedigende Veröffentlichung gelungen. Obwohl eine Hälfte der Rhythmusfraktion vakant ist, schaffen die verblieben Vier, ein durchwachsenes, homogenes, drückendes Ganzes abzuliefern, das sowohl in spiel- als auch vokaltechnischer Hinsicht nur wenige Wünsche offen lässt und definitiv keine Langeweile heraufbeschwört.

Musica Must Die Webzine (RU, link no longer valid)

By Vit Belov

Published 10 January 2007

Rating: 4/10

Голландская death-metal группа VERMIN пытается выделиться из общей массы команд, ищущих счастье в этом стиле. В этом и заключается проблема сей группы. В пресс-релизе указано, что VERMIN играет death-metal с чертами techno-death-metal. Этот techno-death-metal и рушит все надежды VERMIN.

Чтобы завоевать славу в техничном дэте необходимо иметь очень большой талант. Надо сделать всё интересно, оригинально, разнообразно и, главное, слушабельно. Уже интро повергает в уныние. Игра с ритмом кажется хаотичной, музыкальная составляющая не выдерживает критики. Но это ещё не самая главная проблема. В конце концов, любая «шизо-дэт-метал» группа найдёт своего слушателя. VERMIN же сочинили альбом в death-metal и лишь иногда впадают в techno-крайности. Но, пытаясь играть технично, группа теряет скорость и, вероятно, теряет с ней последние шансы. Этот альбом не понравится ни любителям простого death, ни любителем techno death. И то, и то исполнено не убедительно.

Вряд ли VERMIN выйдут из underground. Тем более в Голландии, где хороших death-metal команд достаточно много.

Earshot Webzine (AT)

By macabre

Published 16 January 2007

Rating: 5.5/7

"Progressiv-brutaler Death Metal" schimpft man sich heute schon bald einmal gern, denn ohne jene präfigierten Adjektive schafft man es oftmals gar nicht mehr, Interesse zu wecken - doch ab und an täuscht eine gute Schublade auch nicht über löchrige Socken hinweg: VERMIN machen es sich nach eigenen Worten gern in jener Lade gemütlich, nennen neben MORBID ANGEL auch CRYPTOPSY, MESHUGGAH und DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN als Bezugspunkte. Doch - so meine ich - sollte man etwas kürzer treten, bei seinen Leisten bleiben und jene auch mit Stolze präsentieren - denn: Auch wenn das holländische Quartett durchaus technisches Raffinesse zelebriert und Feinheiten huldigt, so wäre es in meinen Augen doch leidlich vermessen, sich in derart große Schuhe zu stecken.

Ear Candy Magazine (USA)

By Mike SOS

Published January 2007

Rating: 3/5

Deaththrasher Magazine (PR, English version)

By Roxana

Published 2007

Rating: n/a

First of all I want to thank my good friend Gerard de Koning, who after many unsuccessful attempts, managed to contact me through Myspace, I thank him for trusting to DEATHTHRASHER this material from his label “Deity Down”. VERMIN is a Death Metal band with progressive touches and a couple of demos in its possession, and now they present this one, their first full-length album. At first sight I must say that it’s a very professional disc, printed in couch paper, it contains all the lyrics and the prevailing color is dark brown. It’s comforting to review a material of such good quality!!

But let’s go right ahead to the musical aspect: this disc begins with the distressing intro “The Swarm” where we listen to killer bees buzzing more and more load till boom!! The following track “The plague” explodes, which is a vibrant instrumental where the “Verminians” show off all their talent as musicians, what an instrumental mastery! I stress the powerful percussion by Pascal Payens, the brutality of this Dutch I already knew it thanks that your magazine DEATHTHRASHER reviewed the demo from CHAINSAW SURGERY, band where Pascal plays the bass. Suddenly the third track “Ascend” begins where finally I am able to appreciate the vocals by Laurens, who is the most recent member of VERMIN, his vocal register is very similar to the one of Ross Dolan (IMMOLATION), Brutal Death Metal direct to the vein but with technique and precise changes of tempos, aaarrrgghhhhh! Such a savagery! Soon we continue with “Fuel for Flames” that begins with a prolonged riff but soon it accelerates just in the way you like it. These Dutch, in despite of being European, belong to the North American school, I perceive influences from bands like MORTICIAN, IMMOLATION and CANNIBAL CORPSE mainly. The fifth mutilation is “Conquer”, in the same vein of its predecessors, pure Death mosh; soon comes “The Swallowing vortex”, it begins with a desperate yell that says “Reality… the swallowing vortex!!” and soon the fastest percussion, which always stand out, with more aggressive yells in between. The themes never lose the nihilistic spirit, which is captured explicitly in the lyrics (especially in the lethal “Falling Deathwards” and “A nihilist”) and in the devastating combination of guitars (Ron and Wolf know what they do!), instruments that work together wonderfully. The curse of this nihilistic swarm continues feeding our insane minds with each song that comes: “I am the Dissident”, “Birth”, “A nihilist”, “Falling Deathwards”, “Eyes Wide Shut”, “Deviate”, “Dislekt”, “Scientific Domination”, “Collapsed Future Visions”… all of them coherent, with their enthusiastic touches, with unmerciful acceleration and freaky parts, Vermin seem not having any weakness, there’s nothing I could criticize, really I am surprised (and happy) because of the skill of these guys!!! The following track (the penultimate one) “Clipped Wings” is the only one with a faltering tempo, “the most modern” and the biggest with 4' 29”; soon “Vertigo” that begins as a violent attack, then presents the faltering tempo of “Clipped Wings” (I dislike that modern tempo when it lasts too long), but happily after a eerie yell, the fast and violent tempo returns and later finishes with an eerie yell again, as much the song as the album.

If this swarm was not enough for you (an I don’t think so), you also receive as bonus material some multimedia stuff that contains 2 videos, the first one is the video-clip of “Falling Deathwards”, where we appreciate the Verminians in an uncontrolled mosh, simple but effective; soon we have another video “Making `A nihilistic swarm' at Excess Studios” where we appreciate a behind the cameras of the recording of this excellent album and, in addition, we find a long-haired guy called Jercen, who played the session bass for this album (he doesn’t appear in the booklet credits though).

In summary, very good work of VERMIN, I have been very surprised with the first album of these Dutch guys since they show strong abilities and musical intelligence and don’t forgetting the professionalism of Deity Down Records, of course! You must buy this record if you consider yourself a true Death Metaller!!! Just visit http://www.deitydownrecords.com and acquire this holocaustic gem which will make you destroy yourself in an infernal headbangin, ask for Gerard and tell him that you contact recommended by DEATHTHRASHER and you will get a discount or at least a panetón!!! Aaaaarrrrrgggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhh!!

Deaththrasher Magazine (PR, Spanish version)

By Roxana

Published 2007

Rating: n/a

Antes que nada quiero agradecer a mi buen amigo Gerard de Koning, que después de muchísimos intentos fallidos logró contactarme a través del Myspace, a él le doy gracias por confiarme este material de su sello “Deity Down”.
VERMIN es una banda de Death Metal con toques progresivos y un par de demos en su haber, y ahora presentan éste, su primer álbum. A primera vista debo decir que es un disco profesionalmente impreso en papel couché, contiene las líricas de todos los temas, tiene como color imperante el marrón oscuro. ¡¡Da gusto reseñar un material de tan buena calidad!!

Pero vayamos de una vez al aspecto musical: empieza con el angustiante intro “The Swarm”, donde escuchamos abejas asesinas zumbando cada vez más fuerte hasta que ¡¡boom!! Explota la siguiente pista “The plague” que es un vibrante instrumental donde los “Verminians” lucen todas sus dotes como músicos, ¡qué tal dominio de instrumentos! Resalto la poderosa percusión de Pascal Payens, la brutalidad de este holandés ya la conocía gracias a que tu revista DEATHTHRASHER reseñó el demo de CHAINSAW SURGERY, donde Pascal toca el bajo. De pronto se inicia el tercera track “Ascend” donde recién puedo apreciar las vocales de Laurens, el miembro más reciente de VERMIN, su registro vocal es muy parecido al de Ross Dolan (IMMOLATION), Brutal Death Metal directo a la vena pero con técnica, cambios de tempos precisos, aaarrrgghhhhh!!! ¡Qué tal salvajada! Continuo luego con “Fuel for the Flames”, que empieza con un riff prolongado pero luego se acelera de la forma en que te gusta. Estos holandeses a pesar de ser europeos pertenecen a la escuela Norteamericana, se perciben influencias de MORTICIAN, IMMOLATION y CANNIBAL CORPSE principalmente. La quinta mutilación es “Conquer”, en la misma vena que sus predecesoras, puro Death mosh; luego viene “The Swallowing vortex”, empieza con un grito desesperado que dice “¡Reality…The swallowing vortex!” y luego una batería rapidísima, acelerada, que resalta siempre en todos los temas, con más gritos agresivos de por medio.

Los temas nunca pierden el espíritu nihilista, que se refleja explícitamente en las líricas (especialmente en los letales “Falling Deathwards” y “A nihilist”) y en la devastadora combinación de guitarras (¡Ron y Wolf saben lo que hacen!), instrumentos que se compenetran muy bien. La maldición de este enjambre nihilista continúa alimentando nuestras mentes insanas con cada canción que llega: “I am the Dissident”, “Birth”, “A nihilist”, “Falling Deathwards”, “Eyes Wide Shut”, “Deviate”, “Dislekt”, “Scientific Domination”, “Collapsed Future Visions” todas coherentes, todas con sus toques entusiastas, con aceleración impiadosa y con sus partes machacantes. VERMIN parece no presentar flaquezas, no hay nada que pueda criticarles, ¡¡¡estoy realmente sorprendida (y contenta) por la destreza de estos muchachos!!! La siguiente pista (la penúltima) “Clipped Wings” es la única con tempo entrecortado, la “más moderna” y la de mayor duración con 4’29” de todo el álbum; luego “Vertigo” que comienza como un ataque violento, presenta luego los tiempos entrecortados de “Clipped Wings” (que no son de mi gusto cuando duran mucho), pero felizmente después de un grito terrible, vuelve al tempo rápido y violento de siempre y termina con un infernal grito, tanto el tema como el álbum.

Como si fuera poco, recibes como bonus material multimedia que contiene 2 videos, el primero es el video-clip de “Falling Deathwards, donde apreciamos a los Verminians descontrolándose en mosh entre bombardeos, video sencillo pero efectivo; luego tenemos otro video “Making ‘A nihilistic swarm’ at Excess Studios” donde apreciamos un detrás de cámaras de la grabación de este excelente álbum y además nos enteramos que un pelucón de nombre Jercen colabora con el bajo de sesión (aunque no aparece en los créditos del booklet).
En resumen, muy buen trabajo de VERMIN, me he llevado una grata sorpresa con este primer álbum de los holandeses tanto por la habilidad e inteligencia musical de los muchachos como del profesionalismo de Deity Down Records, quienes al parecer tienen muy buen ojo.

Este material debes adquirirlo si te consideras un verdadero Death Metaller!!!!!! Entra a http://www.deitydownrecords.com y consigue esta holocáustica gema con la que te vas a destrozar en infernal headbangin, pregunta por Gérard y dile que lo contactas recomendado por DEATHTHRASHER y te hará un descuento o mínimo te regala un panetón!!!! Aaaaarrrrrgggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

Mindview Magazine (BE, link no longer valid)

By KDM

Published Mindview Online issue 7, 2007

Rating: 4/7 (Brons)

Vermin is een hardwerkende Nederlandse death band die eigenlijk al in 2004 deze nummers had ingeblikt, maar toch duurde het tot deze zomer alvorens hun tweede cd ‘A Nihilistic Swarm’ het daglicht zag. Je krijgt waar voor je geld: zestien nummers, een videoclip en achtergrondinfo over de band. Op muzikaal vlak serveren ze degelijke maar voorspelbare death, al valt hier en daar toch een frisse riff of hook te bespeuren. De vraag is of Vermin hiermee de underground kan ontstijgen. Oordeel zelf!

Metalitalia Webzine (IT)

By Claudio Giuliani

Published 14 March 2007

Rating: 60/100

I Vermin sono una band olandese alle prese con un brutal death metal che “presenta vene progressive”. Questo dichiarano nella loro biografia. Il quintetto, divenuto quartetto recentemente per via dell’abbandono del bassista, arriva al debutto dopo due demo tape che hanno procurato una discreta attività live alla band. “A Nihilistic Swarm” contiene 16 tracce più intro per quasi 50 minuti di death metal brutale suonato in maniera onesta da una band che attinge a piene mani dai mostri sacri del genere, Cannibal Corpse su tutti. La batteria del buon Pascal, fondatore della band, non è devastante per i dettami del genere, molto presente ma non d’impatto, colpa anche del sound dello strumento, non triggerato. Buone le trame chitarristiche che in alcuni passaggi sono abbastanza brutali, delle trame progressive dichiarate dai membri del quartetto olandese non ve n'è traccia. La voce rientra negli standard del genere, cavernosa e che si sente appieno sul sound della band, difetta però di personalità. Le canzoni, tutte sullo stesso livello, sono tutte molto veloci e dalla durata varia, dal minuto dell’opener “The Plague” ai quattro minuti e passa di “Cripped Wings”. Un album che in definitiva non aggiunge e non toglie nulla alla causa del death metal brutale. La band ha la carta d’identità dalla sua parte, è al debutto e potrà solo migliorare. Disco sufficiente, intanto.

Pyromusic Webzine (AU)

By Spiritech

Published 06 July 2007

Rating: 45/100

Not to be confused with the now-defunct Swedish band of the same name, Vermin are aptly named, because these Dutchmen make dirty, rancid Death Metal that's sure to appeal to fans of the likes of their countrymen Arsebreed, Disavowed and Sinister, and other bands who can play their instruments, but don't place too much emphasis on technicality, and more on sheer brutality.

Picking out individual tracks and dissecting them seems a bit unnecessary in this instance, because with the exception of brief intro track 'The Swarm', and the almost Doom-y overtones of 'Birth', they all follow one another in a very similar mould and song structure, although there's just enough variety in this department to keep you listening. There's not quite enough subtlety or interesting little nuances in Vermin's music though- this is all about unleashing a torrential rain of blast-beats and savage riffage, which is inevitably accompanied by the guttural growls, with a few high-pitched screams thrown in as well, the odd breakdown and a fair smattering of groove. 'Deviate' in particular seems to be an exercise in playing as fast as humanly possible, which is ultimately to the detriment of the song.

The tiny flecks of melody present in 'Fuel For The Flames' and the spidery guitars of 'The Swallowing Vortex' (interestingly enough, I hear some Dillinger Escape Plan-like tendencies there) do show a more intricate side of the band, but no one's about to confuse them with Psycroptic or Hate Eternal when it comes to making complex, dynamic Extreme music, although there's some tricky tempo shifts that are pulled off pretty impressively. Considering the band is on such a small indie label the average production values are understandable, but the sub-par drum sound is a bit of a distraction to be honest. The riffs aren't overly exciting either; 'Dislekt' is an exception, but too many of them sound recycled, or like leftovers from other bands such as Hate Eternal, Cryptopsy and company, such as the Cannibal Corpse-esque guitars of 'I Am The Dissident.'

I do like the intensity of tracks like 'Collapsed Future Visions', the moodier sections of 'Eyes Wide Shut' and 'Ascend' though- if the band could bottle that violent energy and channel it into every song, they'd really be going places. It's incredibly difficult to be altogether original in this day and age, and 'A Nihilistic Swarm' doesn't even bother trying to be fresh or reinvent the wheel in any shape or form. At nearly 50 minutes long though, 'A Nihilistic Swarm' is a textbook example of an album that gives you what you want, but then hangs around like a bad smell for about another ten or fifteen minutes without really having any real reason for doing so. This kind of music works best in smaller doses- hopefully that's something these guys learn in the future.

Peacedogman Webzine (USA)

By Cardona

Published 27 October 2007

Rating: 3.5/5

These are some angry Dutchmen!

Not sure why life was so cruel to the guys in VERMIN, but these lowlanders sound mighty disgruntled! Yet another stand-out in the Dutch death metal renaissance (along with DEVIOUS - clicky!), "A Nihilistic Swarm" delves head-first into the extreme, near-grindcore style with reckless abandon. These gritty, A-tuned riffs and blistering blast beats are not for the weak of heart. As soon as the two intro tracks are finished (the buzzing of "The Swarm" followed by the deadly "The Plague"), the listener is already checking his ass for footprints. And just like any good extreme metal album, it never really gives the listener a rest after that. Fortunately, these tracks are in relatively bite-size pieces (averaging about 2 or 3 minutes), along with some relieving interludes ("Birth"), which keep the assault from being overpowering.

The only major gripe about this album would be the production. The muddy sound and super-low tuning prevents the listener from hearing the riffs clearly. Also, the high-pitched kick of the drums treads dangerously into typewriter territory. Still, considering how hellacious of an album this is and how effective it is at delivering the aggression, these sound flaws can be easily enough overlooked, and fans of extreme death metal would definitely be doing themselves a favor by checking this killer album about. Prepare for the Swarm!

Nuskull Webzine (HU)

By haragSICK

Published 04 November 2007

Rating: 91/100

Hungarian:

A holland Vermin munkássága viszonylag egyszerű, 2002-ben alakultak Bredaban, és még abban az évben kijött az első demójuk, majd egy évvel rá az első nagylemez, aztán egy promó, és végül 2006-ra az, melyről most olvasol. Nagyon úgy látom, hogy a srácoknak a 3 év alatt rengeteg ötlet és téma raktározódott fel, hiszen A Nihilistic Swarm, 17 db nóta, s mindezt úgy, hogy a dalok átlag ideje 3 perc. Tehát nem 20 másodperces öncélú gore vagy grind, sőt! Inkább technikás anyag, melyben a death metál mellé azért némi thrash is beférkőzik, s éppen ez által kap az egész old school ízt. Ettől függetlenül a zene tömény, és így 17 szám akár két albumra is elég lett volna… nem is beszélve arról, hogy a CD-re még ráerőszakoltak egy multimédiás részt is, mely igényesre sikeredett és rengeteg hasznos információval kápráztatja el a hallgatót. A borító kivitelezése is jónak tűnik, bár inkább absztrakt valami, mint valami konkrét, szerencsére a lemez tartalma hamar megmutatja acsarkodó fogait…

Mivel 17 számos, és senkit sem akarok kisregény hosszúságú írással terhelni, így kiemelem, amit érdemes… egy rövid bogárdöngicséléssel – gondolom az oszló tetem vagy dög körül - teli intró vezet be a Pokolba, mely ez esetben a megint csak intró szerepét játszó, beszédes című instrumentális The Plague. Az Ascend jól mutatja be a Vermin zenei palettáját, a súlyos riffeken át, az agresszív sebességig és semmibe hulló szólókig, s persze a thrash metál jelenléte sem elhanyagolható. A Fuel for the Flames ezeket a szegmenseket sorakoztatja fel, de itt akar pár igazán modern és agyas szaggatás, és a vége fele hihetetlen jó thrash riffelések, melyek hallatán egyszerre jutott eszembe a Protector és a korai Slayer. A Conquer is szépen szaggat, rombol és taszít, és már az előbb említett modern hatások egészítik ki a darabokra tépkedő The Swallowing Vortex-et is. Az agyas szaggatások és matekos témák némelyike miatt a Meshuggah neve ugrott be, máshol pedig Sinister, Morbid Angel, Immolation és a Grave jelenléte a tagadhatatlan. Ilyen nevekkel nem szokás csak úgy félvállról dobálózni, tehát a zenei tudás itt is nagyon megvan, mely remek döngölő hangzással párosulva tépi fel szívünk, apránként kipumpálva a még fortyogó éltető vérünk. Tovább haladva akadnak lassú, de annál masszívabb thrash-death dolgok (Birth) és pakolós riff gazdag zúzdák (Falling Deathwards és Dislekt), a dallamokra nem sok hangsúlyt fektetnek a holland fiúk, de így is találunk pár nagyon szép szólót és megoldást. A vokál mély hörgés, mely itt-ott beszéddel és tipikus metalcore-os rikácsolással párosul, és ez mondható el a sebességről is… Változó, olykor iszonyat lassú, feszes szaggatásokat hallhatunk, amelyre vészjósló apokaliptikus dallamok épülnek rá (ilyen, pl. a zajos és szinte már ipari befejezésű, kissé talán death- vagy metalcore szerű Clipped Wings), máshol a thrash-death modern vagy old school vezeklései erősödnek fel, és természetesen sok a puritán, már-már grindcore szerű death metál is. A rengeteg érték és önkifejezés mellett szót kell ejtenem arról is, hogy túl sok szám, túl hosszú lemezt szült. A végére hiába sorakoztatnak fel egyre modernebb megoldásokat - s valóban ötletgazdagok, profik és brutálisak – ennek ellenére még is leül a korong, nem marad meg semmi bennünk, csak, az hogy: megbaszták a szánk, ajkunkba harapunk, a keserű és az édes forró egyvelege megérint, vérzik. Annyit érzünk csupán, hogy le lettünk győzve, de hogy mikor vesszük elő legközelebb és vívjuk meg csatánkat egy nihilista rajjal? Ezt magam sem tudom…

…de egy biztos, ha nem is mesterművet, de mindenképpen értékeset és maradandót tettek le az asztalra a holland srácok. A hatások jelenléte elkerülhetetlen és bámulatos, hogy a mai trendet uraló deathcore és metalcore milyen szépen keveredik a grindcore és old school death metál témákkal. Némely megoldásuk egyszerűen zseniális, és bátran ajánlom a befárasztós hossza ellenére is a stílus örök szerelmeseinek. Kétlem, hogy a Vermin csalódást okozna, előbb lesz ebből orrvérzés…

English:

The dutch guys’ work of Vermin is relatively an easy one, they formed in Breda back in 2002, int he same year put a demo out, the next year an album, then a promo, and in 2006 the one that You are reading about now. Int he past three years the guys collected a huge amount of ideas, A Nihilistic Swarm contains 17 songs, with almost every song being around 3 minutes. So it’s not selfish 20 seconds lasting grind! Its very technical stuff, where death metal gets mixed up with thrash, this creates an old school taste. Despite this, the music is very complex, it would have fit on two different album sas well… not to mention the multimedia part they put on the cd, which contains some very informative informations and sweeps the listener off his feet. The cover seems allright too, though it’s some abstract something, then something concrete, luckily the album shows its teeth soon enough…

Because it’s a 17 song album I don’t want anyone to punish anyone with a long story, I’ll just pic the ones that deserve to be chosen… the instrumental intro The Plague takes us to Hell. Ascend shows us what Vermin have to offer us musically, through heavy riffs, aggressive speed, and solos falling into nothing, and of course there is a scent of thrash. Fuel for the flames has some very modern beats, and at the end some amazingly good thrash riffs, which reminded me of Protector and Slayer. Conquer destroys and and the modern elements make The Swallowing Vortey whole. Vermin reminds me of Meshuggah, Sinister, Morbid Angel, Immolation and Grave. You don’t just say this, there must be some musical knowledge and there is and that’s why they deserve to be resembled to these bands, they tear our hearts open with their sound and pump our yet boiling blood out. Further down we can hear slow but massive thrash sounds (Birth) and great riffs (Falling Deathwards, Dislekt). The dutch guys don’t care about melodies alot, though we find some nice solos and solutions. The vocal’s deep grunts, with spoken word and metalcore-screams, the same can be said about the sound.. it varies between very slow tight riffs with an apocalyptic sound (Clipped Wings is like that with its noisy almost industrial ending), elsewhere I feel the presence of modern or oldschool thrash-death and of course pure grindcore-like death metal. Besides the values I must say that the lng songs gave birth to a long album. They have many modern part sin vain, cos at the end nothing remains, only that they fucked out mouths, we bite into our lips and the mix of bitterness and sweet hotness touches us, we bleed. We feel like we’ve been defeated, when are we going to fight out war with this nihilistic mass again? I don’t know yet..

But something’s sure, not a masterpiece, but valuable and remaining, what the dutch guys have created. It’s amazing how deathcore and metalcore mix with grindcore and old school death metal themes. Some solutions are just fantastic, and I recommend it to everyone who’s inot this genre. They won’t disappoint, Your nose is going to bleed first.

Quintessence Webzine (NL)

By Pim Blankenstein

Published November 2007

Rating: 4/6

Having seen these guys live a couple of times and having heard their demo I have to admit I was quite impressed when I popped in their debut full-length “A Nihilistic Swarm”. I knew these guys were into brutal and fairly technical death metal but on this album they’ve surpassed themselves on the technical level. At least it seems that way. When listening properly, the Cephalic Carnage and The Dillinger Escape Plan like mathematical approach within the songs do come across as technical, but it actually isn’t that technical within Vermin’s music. Nevertheless it all gives the overall compositions a nice touch, because this basically is fast brutal death metal, just spiced up with some weird breaks and so on. Yes, you do have to play this kind of music tight as fuck and on this CD Vermin does so quite right. What I’m trying to get across is that on first notice this album seems like a complex thing, which it is not. That doesn’t mean this album sucks, ‘cause it doesn’t. I really can hear the progress these guys have made over the last couple of years. With 17 tracks you get an album worth the money and besides the audio tracks you also get a video of the song ‘Falling Deathwards’ and a video of the actual recordings, that were done at Excess. Sound wise it is a good album and musically it is quite fresh. So all in all I would say Vermin’s achievements have been good and I do think this album will put them on the map as a promising death metal act.

Diabolical Conquest Webzine (IN)

By Mike Reeves

Published 25 January 2008

Rating: 73/100

This is Vermin's first album as a signed act, following their self-released Solypsis in 2003. True to form, this is a very aggressive and raw detuned offering that is played from the heart as evidenced by the harsh gritty edge to riffs and the piledriving trills, hammers, harmonics and other note anguish.

The album gets properly under way with "Ascend", that has a morose Incantation nucleus given a further old school slant by a munificent Rick Rozz style whammy stretch session. "The Swallowing Vortex" is Iniquity-biased metalcore. Aborted vocals and rhythmic staccato combine with droning abyssal harmony to yield a distinctly In-Quest impression during the latter half. "Clipped Wings" stands out; authoritative and sneering Hate Eternal/Morbid Angel skewed harmony sets the tone before a surprising morsel of dirty acute metalcore that does not loiter and morphs towards In-Quest territory again, only this time expanding into a guitar zone of dementia and schizophrenia.

Like the guitarists, ex-vocalist Thomas mixes vocal influences in a way that forges a new personality. There are touches of Ross Dolan (Immolation) and Mike van Mastrigt (Sinister) skulking amongst the deathmetalcore hybrid throat. New vocalist Laurens on "Falling Deathwards" has a Masse Broberg quality that bonds suitably with the old Hypocrisy influence on that song.

Although song structuring is a strength, execution varies a little. A few sloppy changes are at odds with some ultra-tight tempo leaps. It is possible that the perceived slackness can be blamed on the uneven mixing of the drum sounds; the cymbals and toms are indistinguishable from each other and deeply buried. "Quality not quantity" should be Vermin's mantra in future as this album is guilty of being padded out. But I expect Vermin to develop fast as they balance dark catchiness, groove, hostility and complexity with such absolute confidence (in a similar vein to Hour of Penance, who have become outrageously brutal from these mutual roots). Their acclaimed label-mates Devious will be kept on their toes for sure.

Hardsounds Webzine (IT)

By Daniele ‘Tormentor’ Amato

Published 13 April 2008

Rating: 52/100

Questo ‘Nihilistic Swarm’ è il debut album per gli olandesi Vermin, che a quanto leggo sul loro sito ufficiale si stanno preparando a fare uscire un nuovo disco. Ma concentrandoci sul platter in questione, dopo ben due intro, ci si rende conto di trovarsi davanti ad un onesto platter di death metal, che prende le mosse dalle band più rappresentative del genere come Morbid Angel e Cannibal Corpse.

La prolissità eccessiva del disco potrebbe quindi rappresentare la morte in longevità; fortunatamente i Vermin indulgono ogni tanto in divagazioni più originali, riprendendo quanto fatto dai Fear Factory di ’Demanufacture’, inserendo riff spezzati e breakdown che quantomeno rompono con l’aggressione monocorde che fa da padrone nel corso del disco. Ciò non basta certo a garantire ai Vermin un voto eccelso, tantomeno una sufficienza, nemmeno risicata. Certo non un disastro totale, ma siamo distanti dal tipico debutto da ricordare.

Metallus Webzine (IT)

By Riccardo Manazza

Published 07 May 2008

Rating: 60/100

Da non confondere che la band svedese attiva negli anni novanta questi Vermin sono olandesi e suonano death metal del più canonico e brutale. Un sound figlio legittimo dei primordi della scena che oggi non sembra avere più molto da dire anche se qui risulta piuttosto ben eseguito e supportato da una composizione competente. Le solite vocals gutturali accompagnano i più collaudati temi musicali, bilanciando aggressione e parti più rallentate, tempi cadenzati e accelerazioni fulminanti. Suona tutto estremamente sentito e decisamente troppo anonimo, ma almeno i Vermin sanno mettere nelle loro canzoni quel minimo di varietà che permette di non annoiarsi troppo durante l’ascolto. Hanno dalla loro una batteria di riff potenti e una ferocia invidiabile, peccato solo che continuando a sfruttare gli standard più comuni di genere alla lunga affiori implacabile una certa stanchezza e arrivati alla fine la voglia di ripartire da capo è praticamente inesistente.

Negatron Webzine (IT, link no longer valid)

By Marco Ganzerlui

Published 07 April 2008

Rating: 70/100

Dopo un demo-CD di tre tracce intitolato “Alea Iacta Est” del 2002 ed un full-length battezzato “Solypsis”, fatto uscire l’anno successivo, l’outfit olandese di death metal ha deciso di varcare la soglia degli Excess studios di Rotterdam (Severe Torture, Thanatos, Blo.Torch per nominarne alcuni soltanto), con l’intenzione di stendere le composizioni di “A Nihilistic Swarm” nel mese di ottobre del 2004. N’è passata d’acqua sotto i ponti prima che fosse firmato un deal, ma finalmente queste canzoni riescono a vedere la luce del sole. Il dischetto contiene un’intro quasi eponima, sedici brani e un videoclip per il pezzo “Falling Deathwards”, come pure dei filmati durante le registrazioni. Sono convinto che il four-piece abbia trascorso un lasso di tempo considerevole a provare i brani poiché ogni canzone risulta palesemente strutturata in tutto il suo sviluppo. Gli esecutori danno l'impressione poi di essere discretamente preparati e questo contribuisce a rendere gli aficionados dello speed death con alcuni breaks alla Meshuggah qua e là notevolmente interessati. Se poi uno di questi fans è pure un bassista capace, allora potrebbe persino mandare un promo alla band e coronare un sogno arrivando a ricoprire la posizione di bass-player, rimasta vacante subito dopo le registrazioni nel 2005. Auguri!

Metal Music Webzine (LV)

By Bonafide

Published 18 April 2008

Rating: 80/100

A Nihilistic Swarm – это второй полноформатник голландских маньяков Vermin. Вообще даже как-то, признаюсь, обидно, что эта пластинка попала к нам в руки только сейчас, альбом-то ведь вышел на Deity Down Records еще в 2006 году.

Все это великолепное нигилистическое роение исполнено в лучших традициях жанра, наичистейший death metal безо всяких пидараснявых штучек и сопливых душещипательных соляков на полчаса. Чуваки не растекались своей детушной мыслию по древу - треки очень даже компактны... правда, их почему-то аж 17 штук, и где-то на 11-ом альбом теряет свое первоначальное очарование (хм... death metal бывает очаровательным?), потому что начинает казаться, что ребята немного повторяются. Да, здесь есть весьма оригинальные риффы. Да, здесь отлично поработал драммер. Да, здесь и лириксы занятные. И слушать можно этот альбом по кругу много раз. Но вот незадача – после многоразового прослушивания “A Nihilistic Swarm” в голове ничего так и не осталось, ни одна песня толком не запомнилась. Из-за самоповторений во второй половине альбома, скорее всего. Впрочем, даже повторяясь, Vermin''ы бомбят круто и технично, а у меня просто голова дырявая, видимо.

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