Hic Iacet - Hedonist of the Death



It’s a rare occurrence for a bands first release (especially demo) to leave a strong impression and not be forgotten. Spanish inquisitors Hi Iacet have hammered all the right nails into the coffin leaving such notion. Mixing the repulsive combination of black and death metal, Hic Iacet (translating from Latin “here lies” which is commonly written on a grave or tomb’) Hedonist of Death demo is monstrous.

Caught in between a slimy web, Hedonist of Death takes the chaos of Teitanblood, the buzz of old school Darkthrone and the slithering tempo of Necros Christos. Vocals are deep and grueling very comparable to Craig Pillared efforts on Prelude to Apocalypse, and the guitars thick buzzing tone could just oozes through anything. This all  evokes a claustrophobic atmosphere, that encloses the listener into a tomb buried deep into the earth’s crust. Moments of Hellhammer and Celtic Frost rear their way into Breviary of Congenital Rot and The Four Deathaphorisms. While the dense Nihilistic Hellannihilation’s punishing rhythms takes you on a mid pace ride through the murky catacombs of hell, making sure you witness every atrocity. To then fianlly t be consumed by the slightly doomy outro Mortuary Psichophonies  with eerie riffs and suffocating rasps.  

As much Hedonist of Death has to offers it never tries to re-invent the wheel. Instead follows and strengthens the black/death blueprint already lain down. Created with such wicked conviction Hedonist of Death, it's only a matter of time before Hic Iacet conquer all.

8.5/10

Stench of Death #1 Naked Whipper - Painstreaks

Naked Whipper has become quite the cult band, due to their short life span and limited availability of thier releases. Since their 1995 debut Painstreaks, Naked Whipper has  remained remembered in  few cirlces.  Making their sado grind metal classic an almost lost gem.Combining the primitiveness of early Napalm Death, rawness of Repulsion and the malevolence of Blasphemy, Painstreaks is eleven songs of pure raw satanic aggression.

Pagan Pussy Gore Intruder begins Painstreaks assault with a take no prisoner policy. With the vicious sounding guitars, bestial barking of impious lyrics and machine gun blast beats. Setting the listener up for the cyclonic ferocity that is Painstreaks. Each song is short burning incendiary round never passing three minute mark, the shortest being Naked Whipper; which starts with a hard-hitting rhythm before ensuring decimation with relentless grinding. The riffs are what really stand out on Painstreaks, they are insanly catchy and at the same time they never lose there sheer aggressiveness, same goes for the choruses that will have screaming like a maniac to. It  should also noted  all that songs are also delivered in  live ritual form  adding another raw and filthy  layer. Notably vocals are a step grittier and demented then the studio recording, making it worth the listen.

Painstreaks is definitely a gem of the genre. It is rather unfortunate this release still has not had a proper reissue,  only coming in form of bootlegs nowadays. Regardless it's very worth getting your hands.

9.5/10

Murkrat – Drudging the Mire

Mandy VKS Cattleprod’s has returned with her doom project, Murkrat. Drudging The Mire follows from their 2008 self-titled album, however they have made minimal progress between albums.

Just as its predecessor, Drudging the Mire offers a unique conjuration of doom but it is lacking in the riff department. There is not any bad riffs so to speak, but mediocre riff being dragged along for the majority of songs becomes borderline boring. The Drumming also doesn’t aid the situation which is held down by Neil Dyer, which is unfortunate since his work in Innsmouth is attention-grabbing. The saving grace on Drudging the Mire is Mandy's vocals. Her haunting wails and disturbing shrieks holds everything together and take charge on songs. Her vocals also evoke a very creepy atmosphere which is assisted by the gloomy production which fits perfectly compared to the rawer sounding self-titled. Synthesizers, pianos and even organs drape a thick shroud of fog around songs amplifying that lingering mood. At times Murkrat struggles to move forward, I. Rodent and Faceless for example both  have no general direction and shamble around. Though their are moments of doom brilliance. Electric Womb's  lumbering  passages  and slithering  twists drags the listener on a slow haunting  journey through a maze of thorns.

Drudging the Mire is no easy listen as it takes time to grow into, and some may find this only to be a slightly rewarding experience. Though Mandy summons a distinguishing doom sound, it is held back by a lack of progression that make Druging the Mire merely decent listen rather then classic. 

6.5/10

Cianide – Gods of Death



Twenty years on since Cianide’s sinister debut The Dying Truth, and not once have these Chicago crushers compromise their brand of primitive death doom for any trends. Ironically calling their 5^th full length Gods of Death, Cianide prove why they are still leaders of the underground.

Seven years on   after their last full length Hell Rebirth  this formidable trio have not lost any Vitriol at all. With that signature crushing tone Gods of death is sledgehammer to the skull Constructed with bruising straightforward riffs and earth quaking Celtic Frost rhythm. From the infectious power chord pulling in Forsaken Doom  or the hurtling of Idolator and Rising Of The Beast that charge  forward like stampede of flea infested rhino, the sheer simples ness and heaviness will have most salivating. Expected there is bit of doom and gloom. The Dead and Rotting trudges along bulldozing anything that gets caught in its path, slowly picking up the pace before erupting into absolute monstrous riff, making the six minute wait well worth it. The longest song The One True Death unfortunately is rather monotonous, unlike its doom counter part it does not build up to anything and plods around for far too long. Being left to the end of Gods of Death leaves the album on a bit of disappointing note. But since all the songs are stellar make this complaint a minor affair.

Gods of Death is no landmark in death metal, but indisputably to Cianides consistency for over the last twenty years and having stood the test of time. So don’t expect anything innovative from this death dealing trio other then their rotting formula of crushing death metal.

7.5/10

Cruciamentum / Vasaeleth - Eroding Chaos Unto Ascendant Flesh



Here we have two young death metal bands both with high caliber releases under their belts, that being Vasaeleth full length Crypt Born & Tethered to Ruin and Cruciamentum demo Convocation of Crawling Chaos. On this 7’ split one could only expect to hear some filthy death metal tunes. And Eroding Chaos unto Ascendant Flesh definitely delivers. Cruciamentum track Rites to the Abduction of Essence composition sounds very akin what was on there previous demo, though with a shift in production and vocal style. The production is slightly cleaner and the vocals are less guttural being more of a slight raspy growl. Despite the minor changes the track still retains its sinter edge. While on the Vasaeleth side, Profane Ceremonial Exudation sounds like anything off Crypt Born & Tethered to Ruin, so expect muddy Incantation-esque production and crushing doom riffs. Unfortunately the fact that their in only one track offered by each band is slightly disappointing, especially since many would be craving new Cruciamentum material.

7/10

Beyond - Relentless Abomination Vortex

Belgium label Detest Records has been adding some impressive death metal revial bands to thier roster, from likes of Stench of Decay, Swallowed and Miasmal. Beyond  is not different. Changing their name from Shapeless after two demos, German horde Beyond offers three grimy tracks in the vein of that Scandinavian death metal tradition.

The guitars pack a fuzzy punch, vocals are violently bellowed and though the drumming is slightly lacking it still manages to hold everything together. The production is raw giving the music a malicious edge. Aswell Beyond show some of  their musicianship skills by weaving some mid-paced sections amongst their violent assault. Thrash elements also churn through Relentless Abomination Vortex, the opening riff on Pointless Prayers reminder of Nifelheim venomous blackened thrash assault. While hints of Celtic Frost are also noticeable, especially at the end of Appearance From Beyond, with the Tom. G. Warrior-esque “OOOOHHH” which is then followed by pummeling Celtic Frost sounding rhythms. Regardless Beyond wears their death metal influences on their sleeve for the most part of the demo. Though not at the same level of some of their Detest Records peers, Relentless Abomination Vortex is a very good indictor of what we can expect from this German horde in the future.

7/10

Lanterns - Subterranean Effulgence

Amongst the Incantations clones and Sunlight studio revival bands that populate current underground death metal scene, only very few bands reinvent or create an original formula. And Lanterns is definitely one of them. Slivering out of the Finland, Lanterns exhales an unmarked stench into the crypt of death metal. Reeking of old school sounds like Treblinka, Morbid and Hellhammer mixed with their own morbid visions of death, spawning a very unique cryptic sound.

 Multi-instrumentalist Cruciatus spews forth gloomy and thrashy riffs, battering drumming and heaving bass lines. While vocalist Necophilos sinister wails tie everything into murky aura. Lurching forward like shambling corpse fresh from the tomb, Revert the Living into Death begins your plunge into Subterranean Effulgence, with haunting melodies and dark leads. Drenched in gruesome howls and steamrolling riffs Slumbering Dying Dreams displays some raw old school thrash elements creeping through, with out loosing  sight  of the grisly atmosphere.. While the maniac occult cries of “RITUAL” at the end of Ritual Unearthing hammer the final nail into the lid of the coffin shut.

Lanterns sound so familiar yet different, not falling into any of the current trends in death metal. Concocting their own morbid art, Lanterns is one step closer to claiming the thorny crown of death metal.

8.5/10