Sulphur Aeon
Gateway to the Antisphere
2015 Imperium Productions
Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn!! Germany's Sulphur Aeon rise from the depths once again, with their follow up to 2013's "Swallowed by the Ocean's Tide." Those expecting another fairly straightforward death metal album may find themselves disappointed though. The unholy triad of T, M and D have gone in a different direction, following more in the conceptual footsteps of a band like Necros Christos. Not in their sound, mind you... but more where music, image, atmosphere and presentation all become one, to create something that transcends all of them. Even before you put the album in to hear it, you can tell you're in for something different from the norm. The packaging for the CD at least consists of a silver embossed slipcase, featuring the occult merging of a necrogram and the symbol of chaos on the front, and the logo, album title and songs on the back. Then you have a three-panel digipak featuring a bloated tentacle rising from the depths, a glued-in booklet and of course the disk itself. About the only thing they could have done that would have been more impressive (but not cost-effective) would have been to release this as a leather-bound book with the lyrics and such printed on parchment. The overall music and concept behind it has gone beyond the more typical death metal sounds of the debut, in favor of a much more twisted and meandering style that wanders hither and yon along paths that before now were never set upon by the foot of man. The world of Lovecraft is to Sulphur Aeon as ancient Egypt is to Nile or the human condition is to Napalm Death. It is the totality of their being and is that which drives them to create. it is also perhaps their one flaw as well. Sulphur Aeon owe so much to Lovecraft, that they might well have never existed to create such music if he had never existed. This leaves me to wonder what they might have done if they had created their own mythology and based their art on that instead. Even so, this may well become one of the top albums of 2015, at least for those of us in the know... for those of us who dig deeper and are not afraid to let the abyss gaze back into them.
Obeisance
Appetite for Desecration
2015 Old Cemetery Records
The album title may say "desecration," but this album is more about obliteration, devastation and nihilism. Hell Paso's own blasphemers of Biblical proportion are back, and they don't care what your religion is; they're going to call it out for the pack of lies that it is. Most satanic death metal bands focus on either Judaism or Christianity, but Obeisance go where most others won't go, and direct most of their hate on Islam. Just check out "Hail to the Great Satan" if you need proof. If you're easily offended, then this is not the band for you. These guys are against any and all pussification and political correctness. But then metal was never supposed to be politically correct, was it? As far as the production goes, the band has maintained the same level they had on "666 War!" The trashcan drum sound from the second album is still just a memory. Vocally, Martin von Fah-q has more or less made himself even more understandable. Where some vocalists go for the more gutteral and unintelligible, he's opted to be less gutteral in order to get his message across better. At times, his style is more akin to just the spoken word, rather than sung. Somewhere in the distant past, Deicide was the go to band for pure hatred against religion. They've since become a virtual self-parody, and many bands have laid down claims to their now vacant throne. Without a doubt, Obeisance have presented one of the most valid such claims in this album.
Ashcloud
Abandon All Light
2015 Xtreem Music
Ashcloud is somewhat of a relatively new band, featuring the duo of Gareth Nash from the UK and Johnny Petterson of Sweden. I say "somewhat" new, because these two originally got together in 2005 under the moniker of Skinbag. They split up and reunited in 2013 with the new (and much improved!) name of Ashcloud. For the most part, the music here is in the vein of the old Swedish masters, but with a darker vibe... especially in the vocals department. Both members handle that duty, although Johnny is more at the forefront. That's not too surprising, considering he's also the frontman of the reconstituted Wombbath. While they don't reinvent the death metal genre, it is great to hear yet another band that decided to add some balls to their music. Lately, things have been headed more and more in this direction, steadily reversing the recent past of musical castration in order to... shall we say "appeal to the masses and gain a deep market penetration?" It all just boils down to what we've always known. Be true to yourself, be true to your music, and the fans will follow. Failure to do so results in immediate rejection by those who supported you in the first place. Ashcloud put the totality of their souls in their music, and it shows. Well done!
Necrophagia
White Worm Cathedral
2014 Season of Mist
It's been a long and ugly road for this album to be recorded and released. Hopefully Killjoy and the rest of the band feel that the end result has been worth it, because I sure as hell do. "White Worm Cathedral" is just as twisted and sick as you expected it to be. So far, they've never let me down. We'll of course discuss Killjoy's performance, but first let's examine the other elements of the album. Movie samples are used sparingly throughout and are never very long or ones you've heard fifty times elsewhere. Yes, keyboards are present, but as with other Necrophagia albums they're expertly used in a way that adds to the dark atmosphere. They don't take over or become a main instrument. But I'd expect nothing less from Mirai Kawashima of the mighty Sigh. Guitars and bass are of course filthy-sounding as ever with the same nasty tone that we fans rabidly demand. And of course there's the ungodly master of ceremonies himself... Killjoy. How he hasn't permanently damaged his vocal cords is beyond me. As always, he puts everything he's got into his performance, sounding as sick and deranged as ever. As an overall package, "White Worm Cathedral" delivers the death metal goods in spades. Obviously there's nothing here that's super-technical or will get any skin bashers or fret wizards saying, "I could have played that better." But if you wanted that, you'd be reading a review of a Malmsteen album instead, wouldn't you? This is death metal in one of its purest and earliest forms, from the same school as "Scream Bloody Gore," rather than "Altars of Madness" or "Left Hand Path." As I listen to this album, I can only dream of what Necrophagia would be able to put together for a stage show if they had the same bankroll that King Diamond did for his recent US trek. I'm sure there would be decapitations and dismemberings aplenty, and not in that cartoony GWAR style. After all, the band's motto is "GORE FOREVER!"
Blood Storm
The Stellar Exorcism
2014 Barbarian Wrath
It's been nine years since the last Blood Storm full length album, that's about nine years too long without tales of Yuggothian Slayers, Nibiru Assassins, or Qlipthotic Necromancy. Things have changed a bit with the Blood Storm sound. Mezzadurus has mostly given up the high-end black metal shrieks in favor of more of a Tom G. Warrior approach, minus the "ughs" and "heys," combined with some falsettos. Musically, it's still the same mix of death, thrash and black metal as it ever was. After all, why have one influence and main sound when you can have several working together! There is a bit more of a bottom end to the sound, and Hellhammer comes through as the main influence this time around. The lyrical tales haven't changed much, and are still focused on the outer dark, vastness of the nether regions unknown to humanity, and the unnameable things that dwell there. So really, for the most part it's unholy business as usual just like I would have expected it to be. That's really all that one can ask... except for there maybe not being such a long period between albums next time around?
Morbo
Addiction to Musickal Dissection
2014 Memento Mori
Even after 20 years, the sound of death metal varies from band to band. Sure, there's plenty of clones, but there's also plenty who choose to be influenced by several bands and not just one. I find it highly interesting how you can sometimes find bridges between one sound and another. Take Monstrosity for instance. They're been described as the missing link between Malevolent Creation and Morbid Angel. That description fits their "Imperial Doom" album perfectly. So what's that got to do with
this review of Morbo? Except for the fact that they're a "new" band in the scene, Italy's Morbo could have been the missing link between Autopsy and Acheron. Musically, Morbo take most of their cues from Autopsy, with a few hints of Hellhammer thrown in at times for good measure. Vocally though, Mirca "Offender" sounds more like Vince Crowley of Acheron (circa "Lex Talionis") rather than Chris Reifert. So what we have is a band that takes all of their influences and combines them all together in a way where the listener can pick out parts that remind them of band X or band Y, rather than hearing a bunch of songs that are not much more than a homage to one single band. Anyone who simply sums up Morbo as an "Autopsy clone" must not have been paying attention. They must not have heard (or more likely, chose to ignore) the parts of their songs that are definitely not Autopsy-like. Or Abscess-like, for that matter. Their loss, because "Addiction of Musickal Dissection" is far more than the sum of Morbo's influences.
Anguish
Mountain
2014 Dark Descent
Anguish really nailed it with the intro track titled "Mountain." It completely reminds me of the part of the Rankin-Bass animated version of "The Hobbit" when the dwarves sing of Lonely Mountain. The intro sets a very cold and desolate mood, perfect for their brand of deathly doom metal. Or maybe that's doomy death metal? No matter, for the rest of the tracks continue
to conjure stark, barren wastelands and imperious grim mountain peaks looking down at it all. I wish the mix was a little heavier and darker though. Seems a little lighter in tone compared to the debut. As I write that, the line "I murdered him" comes through my speakers, from "Stir up the Demon." I have no doubt that vocalist J. Dee indeed murdered whoever that poor bastard is, and so I hope he'll take that comment as constructive criticism and not make me the next victim of his maddened rage. Obviously, as this is a doom album, and a Swedish doom album at that, comparisons to Candlemass are going to be made. And yes, there are some very parts that sound like Leif Edling might have come up with them. For the most part though, Anguish is a completely different beast with a stronger primal instinct. I really don't want to dwell or harp on about Candlemass, but consider their differences like this... if they're civilized Aquilionians, then Anguish are savage Picts. I'll bet you expected me to say "Cimmerians," didn't you? Well, they are certainly somber enough. But that image of a half-naked madman coming at me with a stone axe still lingers in my mind. At the very least, be cautious with this album. Make sure you're someplace warm with a nice fire and something hot to drink. Beware of cabin fever.
