Death Metal – Page 158 – Wonderbox Metal

Invidiosus – Malignant Universe (Review)

Invidiosus are from the US and they play Death Metal.

After the usual pointless intro we get dirty Death Metal with a Grind influence. It’s foetid, riffy, and full of rotten warmth.

The singer has an impressive growl. Deep and satisfying, straight from the bowels. Nice. The higher screeches are good too.

This is a kind of timeless Death Metal that might take cues from the past but is quite content in the present also. It’s heavy and fast, but also allows moments of technicality into the fray as well as slower, more considered parts.

The riffs rip and the drums pound. The gritty nature of the recording works in the band’s favour and overall this is a most enjoyable ride down the Death Metal canal of grisly delights.

Check them out.

Athanatheos – Alpha Theistic (Review)

Athanatheos are from France and play Blackened Death Metal.

This is a bold and ambitious release that’s as impressive as it is unexpected. As a concept album of sorts it naturally reserves the right to be different from the norm and the band make the most of their artistic freedom. Great album cover too.

First off though, before looking at the music itself, I feel compelled to applaud the production. A strong sound benefits the songs and allows the band free reign to create something with personality.

The music itself is brutal and harsh but also includes many moments of interesting ideas and standout parts. This is not simple music and it has obviously been put together under a labour of love and meticulous care. This level of quality is rare, and extends right down to the originally-recorded Gregorian chants that feature on this release.

The songs are varied and utilise pretty much all of the weapons in the Extreme Metal arsenal at one point or another, be this blast beats, slow/mid/fast sections, groove, Doom, etc. as well as the more unconventional parts also.

The tracks are all played well and solos/leads/melodies are put to good use. Everything is tight and focused. Songwriting skills are on top form and the band clearly understand the requirements for dynamics and energy.

Within its chosen Blackened Death Metal style this is a wonderfully diverse and creative release that explores all kinds of Extreme Metal territory before culminating in the final 16 minute track.

This really is a superlative album, and one which would almost certainly have featured in my best of year list if it wasn’t for the fact that it’s already a couple of years old. The fact that such a quality band can produce such a quality album yet remain in complete obscurity is disheartening to say the least.

It’s time to remedy this shocking turn of events. Go seek out Alpha Theistic and include it in your collection with all haste. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.

Funeral Whore/Obscure Divinity – Summon the Undead – Split (Review)

Funeral Whore are from the Netherlands and Obscure Infinity are from Germany. Both bands play Old-School Death Metal.

Funeral Whore start proceedings with two tracks. Traces of Death begins with a menacing riff and an intimidating growl. At this point I know it’s going to be good.

Ultra-low vocals preside over the top of a slow and evil riff before the band become a bit more mid-paced and heavier guitars start playing. The song merges elements of Bolt Thrower and Incantation to create an enjoyable track.

The second track East Area Rapist has a killer Old-School riff that shows the band has an ear for a good tune. Stylistically we’re in the same territory as the first song although this one has a bit more melody and chugs along happily as the drums roll and the vocals make deep, dark noises.

After these we have Obscure Infinity with the song Maniac Destroyer. In contrast to Funeral Whore’s side, Obscure Infinity have a stronger production and more of an immense feel.

Maniac Destroyer has blastbeats and is a more upbeat proposition overall. A touch of the Swedish Death Metal feel is on the track, (sans That Sound), and the deep vocals punctuate the thick guitars like giant exclamation marks.

Obscure Infinity are like a shot of adrenaline and their track has all of the requisite components of a winner. The main riff is excellent and gives me the same thrilling feeling as when I was first getting into this type of music oh so long ago. One of my favourite parts of the song is the solo section with the rhythm guitars just laying down some excellent backing riffs.

A fine taster for a fine couple of underground bands. For the length this is damn near essential I’d say.

De Profundis – Frequencies (Review)

De Profundis are from the UK and this is their latest EP of Progressive/Technical Death Metal.

The band have a deep sound that showcases the technical riffing and aggressive nature of their music.

The drumming is all over the shop, but in a very good way; they’re not afraid of using unusual rhythms and off-kilter beats.

This description also applies to the rest of the music, although the band do throw in some melodies and leads here and there when needed.

Apart from the vocals, which are low and deep, the band remind of Death at their most Progressive and Experimental. Indeed; the last song out of the 4 tracks here is a Death cover of the song Crystal Mountain.

Brutality is still a factor in their sound though; this is Death Metal after all. This brutality is offset with sharpened riffs and fretboard exploration that never allows it to become too bludgeoning; rather this is extreme in a different way. It’s technically precise and musically demanding.

At 20 minutes in length this is a decent showcase for the band and allows them to display their musical wizardry to good effect.

A worthwhile listen.

Fallujah – The Flesh Prevails (Review)

Fallujah are from the US and this is their second album of Death Metal.

But this is not your normal, run-of-the-mill Death Metal by any standards, this is something truly special. Fallujah play Technical/Progressive Death Metal with expansive melodies, daring structures and bold ambitions.

A huge production is a prerequisite for anything like this in order for everything to be clear and exact, and this is what we get.

The songs are hugely impressive both technically and song-wise. There’s a lot packed into these tracks and every second of music seems to have been considered and planned to complete precision before anything has even been played. It’s tight, proficient and worthy of the title master-crafted.

Their material has its brutal side of course, (this is Death Metal after all), but they mainly deal in atmospheres and moods. For example; it often seems like two songs are being played at the same time, with an intricate Death Metal song being played over the top of a haunting Post-Metal track. Fallujah’s genius is to make this fit together flawlessly and with utter precision so that the juxtaposition of styles sounds whole and complete.

Somehow the band manage to be rhythmic, brutal, spacey, melodic and colourful simultaneously, with the songs positively dribbling emotion and atmosphere.

The album is laden with effects and additional instrumentation providing so many layers of depth that it’s almost easy to overlook the phenomenal playing of the core instruments and the rather impressive noises that they make. There’s too much going on here to take in in only one sitting, and like the best albums it grows on you like a welcome disease.

Fallujah have produced a stunning album that raises the bar so high that most other bands will fall by the wayside just trying to keep up.

You need this album.

Giant of the Mountain – Moon Worship (Review)

This is the latest album from US Blackened Progressive Death Metal band Giant of the Mountain.

Blackened Progressive Death Metal? Sure it’s a bit of a mouthful but it is a more-or-less adequate description of Giant of the Mountain’s music.

Their songs have distinct Progressive tendencies with complex riffs and structures congealing around an exploratory Metal core.

Death Metal serves as the largest percentage of that core, albeit a form of Death Metal that relies on melodics and technicality rather than sheer brutality.

And the Blackened part? This is sprinkled on top of everything really. It’s not as if Black Metal is a massive part of their sound, but it’s definitely a feature and they would sound quite different if this aspect of their music was removed. It’s a quality of some of the riffs, it’s in some of the vocals and it’s apparent in the distinctly non-Death Metal recording.

Couple all of the above with a bit of Sludge and a DIY attitude and you have Moon Worship.

Apart from the Blackened vocals we also get Death Metal grunts and some Viking-esque epic cleans.

The involving songs make the most of their play time with melodies and passages that seem to draw you in before going off on another tangent. These tracks really have been well written and the underground production enhances the feeling of listening to something special. This is a very creative and enjoyable release.

If you combine parts of bands like Enslaved, Opeth, Death, Gorguts and a whole slew of others then you’ll have an idea of the Giant of the Mountain sound. It’s refreshing. My only slight complaint is that even though the production on the album is adequate for the most part and for some instruments, (like the bass), it’s perfectly judged; for me the drum sound is a little weak and timid sounding. This is very subjective of course, (like all things music-based), and it’s not enough to spoil my enjoyment of this album, it’s just that it sounds a little flat to me and for a band that are as good as this I would prefer fuller-sounding drums.

Slight sound issues aside though, this really is the kind of album you want to take your time to get to listen to; absorb and repeat. It’s well worth the time.

As you can see, this is not your average release and certainly stands out from the pack. Get your fill of Giant of the Mountain and get worshipping the moon as soon as you can.

Pyrexia – Feast of Iniquity (Review)

Pyrexia are from the US and play Death Metal. This is their fourth album.

The band play Brutal Death Metal which has a Slam/Hardcore/Groove side to it; Suffocation-style USDM gone the way of Kataklysm.

An acid-etched sound with pounding drums and guitars like stone; the band kick up a maelstrom of dust and leave devastation in their wake.

As the album progresses it reminds me strongly of the aforementioned Katakylsm and their combination of blasting and groovier rffing. Pyrexia employ pretty much the same formula and even the vocalist is similar in style; raw growls that are obviously Death Metal but not quite deep enough to be truly extreme.

The short songs and relatively short nature of the album mean it’s over quickly and overall leaves a positive impression.

If you like a bit of heavy groove with your Death Metal then look up Pyrexia and give them a try.

Usurpress/Bent Sea – Split (Review)

Usurpress are a Death Metal band from Sweden and for this split they have gone halves with International Grindcore supergroup Bent Sea.

Usurpress give us three tracks, the first of which is an intro.

The second song, A Tidal Wave of Fire, is the main meat of their split and is 7 minutes of impressive death-dealing, whilst the third is shorter but no less rabid.

The band play Crusty Swedish Death Metal with an underground swagger and a healthy groove. Rather than adopting that famous chainsaw sound though, the band have opted for a dirtier, less-produced sound. It’s raw and nasty but suits the nature of the music.

The vocals are grim growls that alternate with infected screams, as well as a bit of semi-sung spoken word.

Bent Sea are up next with 8 tracks of furious Grind.

In contrast to Usurpress’ rawness, Bent Sea have a more professional sheen, albeit one that’s still heavy and very aggressive.

Taking cues from Napalm Death, Terrorizer and Repulsion, they savagely hack their way through the songs with aplomb and violence.

That the band is comprised of seasoned veterans is never in doubt, as their mastery of the genre is apparent from the start.

Each song is expertly executed and delivered with venom and bile. I’ve always loved the singer of Aborted’s voice and to hear him on these tracks is a great pleasure.

A very enjoyable split, with the Bent Sea tracks in particular shining bright.

Worth it.

Morthus – The Abyss (Review)

This is the début EP from Polish Blackened Death Metallers Morthus.

This is a 3 track EP that contains such wonders in its short playing time!

It starts with the track Torment; suitably titled, it seems to be the usual kind of perfunctory intro until it redeems itself with some actual music about halfway through. This segues into the second track Beast from the Abyss and it’s clear that although this is their first non-demo release, it’s impressively professional and has a great sound.

The band play with a Death Metal core while adding some melodic Black Metal influences to the riffs and the occasional scream that enhances the main growling vocals. Merging the two genres of Black and Death can sometimes create mixed results, but they have distilled their influences into the right measures it seems.

The guitars take the Death Metal base and throw in some tricks from both Black and Classic Heavy Metal, including some duelling guitars and some excellent leads/solos.

Stylistically they remind of Hypocrisy in the sense that they combine these three elements quite naturally and seamlessly, although it should be stressed that they don’t actually sound too much like Hypocrisy except in a very superficial way.

The third song is named In the White Wolf’s Kingdom and is another master-crafted combination of the various Metal styles. It slowly unfolds with a Blackly melodic Metal riff into a mid-paced jog before introducing faster elements. They also add additional choral elements to their repertoire and these work very well. It’s another win for Morthus who suitably demonstrate their talents on this all-too-short EP.

Morthus are a perfect example of why the Extreme Metal underground deserves so much support – there are hidden gems tucked away everywhere in plain sight, all you have to do is go looking for them and you will be rewarded.

This is an absolute top-notch release and I cannot wait until they release a full album. If it’s even half as good as this it will be better than most.

Essential listening.

Morbidity – Revealed from Ashes (Review)

Morbidity are from Bangladesh and play Death Metal. This is their début album.

Wow! The first track Decaying Souls immediately has my attention! Only 2 minutes long; it’s an intro essentially, but a damn good one! Bleakly tuneful bass, horror-filled melodics and a creepy vibe enhanced by an ominous church bell, this is a brilliant start to the album that catches and holds the attention straight from the off.

The second track is named Incarnation of Death and picks up where the first one leaves off, introducing the more brutal side of the band. The eerie, creepy riffs are still there, they’ve just been made heavier. Holy shit this band knows how to write some good riffs.

The vocals are deep and cavernous, sounding like something inhuman that’s pulled itself up from The Pit.

The sound this album has is just amazing. It’s deep, heavy and warm. Although it’s an immensely strong sound it doesn’t come off as over-produced and still reeks of the underground and of things left to rot.

The songs are exactly that; songs. They have character and personality, with each song being memorable. There is no filler.

Revealed from Ashes has an element of Swedish Death Metal to its sound in the sense of the creepy, grave-tinged melodics and the heavily tuneful songwriting. All achieved without resorting to That Chainsaw Sound or straying too far into Sweden’s territory.

This may be Old-School Death Metal but this is one decaying cadaver that smells as fresh as the day it died. I can’t write enough good things about this album without it coming off as some form of hyperbole, but suffice to say I love this release.

Morbidity have created an outstanding slab of pure, uncompromising Death Metal. If other bands had even a pinch of their songwriting skills and sense of dynamics and pacing then the Metal scene would be an even better place than it already is.

Okay, so if there’s just one Death Metal album to get this month this is it.

MORBIDDIITTTYYYYYYYYRRRGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!