Deicide have diminished a little with each album since Once Upon the Cross, but after having reached a low with In Torment in Hell, it was like the band had gained new energy on Scars of the Crucifix. Soon after the Hoffmann brothers got the boot, and many said this was the end of Deicide, but they were wrong, dead wrong. It's like the band has been reborn with the addition of Jack Owen and Ralph Santolla.

The music is far more technical and varied than anything the band has done before. I keep hearing lots of similarities with Vital Remains, and perhaps that isn't odd, knowing that Dave Suzuki stepped up to the plate for a short period filling in for the Hoffmann brothers alongside Jack Owen. During the first couple of listens, it bothered me that it doesn't sound much, if anything at all like Deicide used to. But Jack and Ralph have clearly been the injection that the band needed to re-vitalize themselves.

Deicide 2006 sparkles with renewed energy and nerve. The songs are far more diverse than they've been for long. The music is still brutal with lots of the mandatory blastbeats, but there's plenty of room to slow down once in while. The leads may have been dominant on Scars of the Crucifix, but that was nothing at all compared to the guitar-work on The Stench of Redemption. The guitar-work of Jack and Ralph is just jaw-dropping.

Glen Benton sounds pissed off, as always, so that is one of the things that remains intact. Drummer Steve Asheim also sounds tighter and more diverse than he's been for long. Deicide also experiments a little more this time which in the past was unheard of. Here are things that might surprise quite a few people, but only for the positive, I'm sure. The Stench of Redemption is very, very different from anything the band has done before, and it's all for the better. The energy is back and the music is durable. Not at any point does it become tiresome or same-sounding.

Scars of the Crucifix was good, but lacked something. The Stench of Redemption is a whole different story. It's a well-placed punch in the face of all the critics. It's possibly the best Deicide album since Legion, or even the debut Deicide. No doubt that this is the second coming of Deicide.