HOODED MENACE - Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration review

 

HOODED MENACE - Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration

Season of Mist

Imagine you are one of those bands which helped re-introduce / recreate a sub-genre style of Extreme Metal (aka Death Doom) that a decade later would see a hundred copy-cats? Back in 2010 I wouldn't have guessed that while I was blasting this Finnish band's second album, Never Cross the Dead. Since then I've been a fan of HOODED MENACE and have no problem mentioning em whenever I hear another band influenced by them as well as others.

Fast forward to a few years back and HOODED MENACE decided to be Finland's version of MY DYING BRIDE. That started with 2015's Darkness Drips Forth. OK that might be a bit of an exaggeration but the band did move away from the crush kill and destroy style to a more wide ranging exploration of Death Doom. They embraced the meloncholy and standard Metal styles to progress themselves forward in order to be exciting. 

Hey let's be honest here. How many Finnish Death Metal or Death Doom acts do you know who started out heavy as fuck only to mellow out an album or two later? I can think of a dozen plus. The difference is HOODED MENACE move onward at a snail's pace as opposed to past acts who just flipped a switch. The fact is that 2015's Darkness Drips Forth was an experiment which worked. Ossuarium Silhouettes Unhallowed from 2018 was a step backward but still a great release. But then on 2021's The Tritonus Bell, an album I liked a lot, the band were like hears the path we're following now. 

Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration is simply a continuation of experimenting with their Death Doom sound without going off the template. I'm sure some people will question them covering a DURAN DURAN song, "Save a Prayer". Hey at least it ain't "Hungry Like A Wolf" which I obviously despise. The traditional Metal style thrown in here reminds me of stuff KING DIAMOND use to do. Of course when you hear the keyboards and cello work you think MY DYING BRIDE. 

In the end hey since Harri Kuokkanen took over on vocals which allowed Lasse Pyykko to concentrait more on compositions as well as great guitar work. This band has become more of a surprise which each album as oppossed to a stick in the mud. I'm sure they like that new bands are copying their old style to the hilt. Which is why they're creating new sounds for people to enjoy. Great Album!  

https://www.season-of-mist.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hoodedmenace.bandcamp.com/album/lachrymose-monuments-of-obscuration

DWELLING BELOW - Wearisome Guardians reviews

 

DWELLING BELOW - Wearisome Guardians

Transcending Obscurity Records

Back in the mid to late 2000s you had a new league of bands giving the sub-genre of Death Doom a new set of legs to stand on. The sound was cavernous and had a claustrophobic atmosphere ridden with filth. The riffs were slow and heavy but once in a while they became psychotic. The guitar soloing was unpredictable as in lighting strikes. Finally the vocals were bestial and the rhythm section were either perfectly timed or totally eradic. It was definitely Death Doom with some blackened bits slipped in for fun.

Now since then every year there's a new band reproducing the same sound over and over again with not much progressive changes. Also you still have a few of that old guard trying their best to stay relevant in a scene with so many imitators. Then there's the fans who buy (hopefully) the records / CDs who are like wow this new band is just as good as the band I liked last year. 

Look I've never been accused of being jaded in the past but I have friends who are. They gave up on most new Extreme Metal a decade or so ago. I've always been the believer in new bands reinventing the old and giving it some open air to breath as well as infect the minds of young listeners. But as of now well this type of Death Doom has hit a brick wall just like most Black Metal and Old School Death Metal. 

With all of that said here's the second album by the US Death Doom act DWELLING BELOW. They're a three piece act who started out in 2023 and are also together in a Prog Tech Death band called HIERARCHIES. The three guys are guitarist Nicholas Turner, bassist Anthony Wheeler and drummer / vocalist Jared Moran. Also these guys are in a ton of other bands especially Jared Moran. 

These guys created a damm great sounding fifty plus minute dissonant Death Doom album.The musicianship is extraordinary. The soundscapes are all about dread as well as destruction. I've listened to at least a dozen full lengths this year doing this type of Death Doom style and I have to say this second album by DWELLING BELOW is the best. It also hits that brick wall I mentioned earlier. This is as best as it gets for this sub-genre. Everything after this one will be decent.   

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://dwellingbelow.bandcamp.com/album/wearisome-guardians

RITUAL MASS - Cascading Misery review

 

RITUAL MASS - Cascading Misery

20 Buck Spin

Imagine tossing PORTAL, INCANTATION and HOODED MENACE into a blender. Out of it you would get an act that's horrific oppressively subterranean sounding Death Doom. And that act would have a release out on Dark Descent Records. I'm not kidding because I know I have at least two dozen or more releases by bands on Dark Descent Records who have that sound. 

I won't stop there because I have plenty of releases by other labels who have bands sounding like this. The whole sound structure permeated around the late 2000's. And here we are today well over a decade later with new bands still repeating something they heard a few years ago and maybe adding a few points of nuance. 

Case in point, this is the debut full length from RITUAL MASS who are a four piece act from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that started out in 2016. Prior to this the band released a self titled demo in 2017, an EP "Abhorred in the Eyes of God" in 2019 and a single in 2021. If you're interested you can find all of that material on a compilation they have titled It Ever Turns which is available on CD and cassette. 

Now Iike I said earlier I've heard all of this type of Death Doom before. So on this six song release all of the cuts encapsulate the description I said earlier. While the first part of the album is fairly cut and paste. The second part is where the band decides to inject some self worth into the mix. The culmination is a fourteen plus minute final opus of everything they've done over the past five cuts but more brutal sounding. 

Yeah sounds like a great way to end a performance. But with so much of this style of Death Doom out there it's hard to justify it by saying "well it's good for 2025". As if we've forgotten the good stuff from last year a couple of which sound like this. In the end this debut by RITUAL MASS is decent.

https://www.20buckspin.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://20buckspin.bandcamp.com/album/cascading-misery

THORN - Nebulous Womb of Eternity review

 

THORN - Nebulous Womb of Eternity

Transcending Obscurity Records

Back in 2023 I called this one man band's third full length "the perfect album for a Death Metal pot head". I said that because musically that release was brutally heavy Death Metal but with a huge amount of Doom atmosphere which to me seemed up in smoke. Then again there might've been some peyote involved. I'll get to that point sooner or later. 

Like I mentioned earlier THORNS is a one man band and musically it's Death Doom. The one man is Brennen Westermeyer from Phoenix, Arizona who performs all instruments. Personally Brennen is great with the cannabal vocals, the guitar riffs / song structures and the off sync guitar leads. But he does need a bassist and drummer. I'm just saying in my not so humble opinion.

Be that as it may this new release is not for pot heads or late night listening unless you're into Lovecraft. This is music which echos through the northern forests of this man's state. Then again it could flow upon the wind of the southern Arizona deserts. This is Death Doom which is actually scary. It's part of the modern take on the genre which has been going on now for a decade. 

I like this album more than the last one simply because it has a creepy vibe which bothers me a lot. I think about being in the wilderness by myself and there's something menacing around my camp. The trudging diabolical riffs and roared bestial vocals make it even worse. Everything about this new album is by far scary and vicious. Yeah it's cool but bothersome on the psyche. 

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://thorndm.bandcamp.com/album/nebulous-womb-of-eternity

VARIOUS ARTISTS - Transcending Obscurity 2025 label sampler review

 

VARIOUS ARTISTS - Transcending Obscurity 2025 label sampler

Transcending Obscurity Records

Well one of my favorite labels puts out their great stuff for 2025 so everyone to check out. I know last year Transcending Obscurity Records had a handful of 2024 favorites in my end of the year listings. Listening to this sampler gives me some ideas on what bands I really wanna check out in 2025. 

For the record the list on this compilation here is as follows:

1. Floating (Sweden) - I Reached The Mew (Death Metal/Post Punk)

2. Byonoisegenerator (Russia) - Eb(D#) (Jazzgrind)

3. Veilburner (US) - That Which Crypts Howls Grandeur (Avant-garde Death/Black Metal)

4. Serpent Corpse (Canada) - Iron Corpse (Death Metal)

5. Dead Chasm (Italy) - Spectral Tyranny (Death/Doom Metal)

6. Viande (France) - L'homme Brasier (Death Metal)

7. Thorn (US) - Quartersawn Remains (Death Metal)

8. Retching (US) - Shower Curtain Silhouette (Death Metal)

9. Eschaton (US) - Blood of the People (Technical Death Metal)

10. Unaligned (US) - Essence Erased (Technical Blackened Death Metal)

11. Fleshbore (US) - The Ancient Knowledge (Technical Death Metal)

12. Enragement (Finland) - Insectiferous Abomination (Brutal Death Metal)

13. Haxprocess (US) - The Confines of the Flesh (Progressive Death Metal)

14. Xenosis (US) - Altar of the Hound (Progressive Death Metal)

15. Imperialist (US) - Starstorm (Black Metal)

16. Skaphos (France) - Abyssal Tower (Death/Black Metal)

17. Obscureviolence (Russia) - Pulse of Subconscious Cruelty (Death/Black Metal)

18. Shrine of Denial (Turkey) - Climbing Through Nothingness (Death/Black Metal)

19. Crown of Madness (Canada) - Ashes of Mine (Dissonant Death Metal)

20. Mors Verum (Canada) - Bloodied Teeth (Dissonant Death Metal)

21. Hexrot (US) - Heavenward (Avant-Garde Death Metal)

22. Perishing (Costa Rica) - Castle of the Leached Body (Death/Doom Metal)

23. Dwelling Below (US) - Wearisome Guardians (Death/Doom Metal)

24. Felgrave (Norway) - Pale Flowers Under an Empty Sky (Avantgarde Death/Black/Doom Metal)

25. Misanthropæ (US) - Enshrined (Dissonant Death Metal)

26. Pillar of Light (US) - Certain End (Sludge/Doom/Post-Metal)

So the bands I'm interested in from this year's label acts are a FLOATING from Sweden who sound interesting with their Death Metal meets Post Punk sound. Then there's BYONOISEGENERATOR from Russia because they sound like some really insane grindcore. SERPENT CORPSE from Canada is cool old school Death Metal. Add to that there's DEAD CHASM from Italy, VIANDE from France and RETCHING from the US all of whom are old school DM. 

Yes as all readers of this blog (and frankly who isn't a reader by now) know old school Death Metal is my go to sound. But this sampler has plenty of bands pushing the progressive or brutal tech side of the genre. There's also some interesting Black Metal by IMPERIALIST from the US. SKAPHOS from France sounds cool as well. As far as the slow and low sounds of Death Doom go there's a couple of bands on here but PERISHING from Costa Rica is definitely promising. 

All in all this sampler is 26 tracks of extreme metal mayhem that'll please any fan of uncontrolled musical destruction and chaos. That's why I like this label and it's also why a dozen or more of their releases appear on my end of year favorite list. Let me also add that the song sequencing on here is killer. In the beginning the music tortures you, by the mid point you're getting the shit beat out of ya and in the end you're buried alive. How cool is that? That's cool as shit so support this label.

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE: 

https://transcendingobscurity.bandcamp.com/album/2025-label-sampler

DEVENIAL VERDICT - Blessing of Despair review

 

DEVENIAL VERDICT - Blessing of Despair

Transcending Obscurity Records

Two years ago I called this Finnish band's full length debut, Ash Blind, Death Metal for late night listeners. I also thought it was of the best albums of 2022. I said that then because I am a late night listener half the time . So there is an affinity to certain bands when you first check em out especially the mood and surroundings your in. 

So here we are two years later with their sophomore full length and I have to say the title of this release is so perfect as far as the music goes. DEVENIAL VERDICT are a Death Doom band but not in the traditional Finnish style. We fans know that the traditional stuff is painfully slow and depressive. This four piece is all about violence and claustrophobia. 

While listening to this you feel like the walls are closing in on ya. Also instead of trying to destroy you with the riffs it's like you're being grabbed by the shoulder and carried along with the chords. Plus the band throws in all of the these subtle breaks from song structure (aka: "atmosphere and dissonance"). Yeah I do laugh at those terms of late but anyways....

Once again guitarist Sebastian Frigren just impresses me with his comforting guitar work. I mean yeah he can punish you with a heavy handed riff. But it's his light handed work on the frets and then coming forth with sonically charged fury which is really fuckin exciting to hear. Two years ago I called him a six string virtuoso and yeah it still stands. 

Now to the greatness of what Sebastian Frigren produces you've got vocalist Riku Saressalo who does the whole bear / beast vocal style. But he's a humble beast, sure he can come across as angry but also in despair and anguish in his singing style. I mean what this band does is truly that beautiful and beast like attack which is what great Finnish Death Doom has been held in great prominence. 

The whole thing here is whether Blessing of Despair is a great successor to their cool as fuck debut. I think it is and it's all about having a release that has you sitting inside thinking the walls are closing in. And yet there's some escape albeit thinly. Oh yeah it's a major late night release to enjoy. Nuff Said. 

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://devenialverdictband.bandcamp.com/album/blessing-of-despair

ENCOFFINATION / SHAMBLES split release

 

ENCOFFINATION / SHAMBLES split release

Selfmadegod Records

I've used a lot of metaphors when it comes to split releases. But I've got a new one and it's 'Buy for One and Get the Second One Free'. And that perfectly explains this release because on here you've got one US band that I'm a huge fan of and another band from Thailand who I've only read about.

So let's start with the new one SHAMBLES who are a four piece blackened death doom act. They contribute two long pieces of hate filled blasphemic brutality. In a way they remind me of IMPIETY from Singapore. SHAMBLES has been around since the late 1990's and have changed their extreme style over the decades. On here they're decent as in something that crawled out from the pits of hell and want to devour you. 

Next up are ENCOFFINATION who I've been a fan of since their Ritual Ascension Beyond Flesh full length came out in 2010. By the way that was also released on CD by Selfmadegod Records. Bias Alert? Sure why not because years ago I learned that ENCOFFINATION were not only slow and pure death doom but listening to one of their full lengths and a day would be over with. 

Case in point what SHAMBLES does in ten to eleven minutes on this split release. ENCOFFINATION takes under six minutes and it feels like a half hour has past by. If you listened to the whole ENCOFFINATION discography in a row you would think two years had passed you by. Yeah I'm talking about riffs with cobwebs and dust upon em. I'm talking about cavernous bestial vocals that sound like the snores from a hibernating grizzly bear.

As always there's got to be a winner in a split release, much like a wrestling match. On here ENCOFFINATION just fuckin rule. 

https://selfmadegod.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://selfmadegod.bandcamp.com/album/split-cd-smg-368

AZELL - Death Control review

 

AZELL - Death Control

Rottweiler Records

Just to be honest with ya, sludge ridden death doom is as common here in the US South as is grits. Now if you don't know what grits are well they're a staple for breakfast here in the South. I don't eat grits but every other Southern motherfucker does. But anyways as far as the music genre goes yeah the whole turn it up, tune it down and go slow has been around for fuckin decades. I believe someone actually made a documentary about it years ago. 

Anyways when I saw the tagline as far it being sludge / death doom ya know I was gonna pass on it. But I read the promo info then figured it might be interesting and hell yeah I'm glad I did. AZELL are a two piece husband and wife sludge / doom duo hailing from Louisville, Kentucky. OK so they're married and playing this type of extreme music so that's something different. The two people are Courtney Napier who plays bass and is the lead vocalist. David Napier is the guitarist, drummer and adds lead and background vocals.

Death Control is the duo's debut full length since starting out in 2022. Prior to releasing this album they just put out digital singles. So musically this is fairly common sludge / doom but with a few extra touches that make it interesting. First and foremost I think Courtney Napier's vocals are amazing. She's got this sick acid tongue guttural screech that's damm good. When David Napier adds in his vocals he's sounds just as sick but more of a gross guttural sound. 

Musically their brand of sludge / death doom is benefited by a lo-fi production that emphasizes the filth covered sound. And you wanna talk about slowness? Listening to this is akin to watching a turtle drag a cinder block through tar. The band provides a solid wall of noise to effect your ear drums. Even with all of that AZELL do add in some sinister monolithic atmosphere on tracks like "A-M" and "Wallow". 

Going back to my earlier points yeah you've probably heard something similar. I'm not gonna name drop because it would be redundant. The bottom line is that Death Control is a pretty good debut album from AZELL. And I'm rooting for em so next time around hopefully they're be commonly known as the names others might drop in order to describe em. Yeah it's a winner.

https://www.rottweilerrecords.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://azellrr.bandcamp.com/album/death-control

GATEWAY - Galgendood review

 

GATEWAY - Galgendood

Transcending Obscurity Records

This is the second full length by GATEWAY, a one man death doom act from Belgium. The one man is Robin van Oyen. Just some history for you. Robin started GATEWAY back in 2014. After one well received demo, Aeternae, which was three cuts. He followed it up with the self titled full length in 2015. After that well things got shortened. From 2016 to 2021 Robin released four EPs. 

So here we are in 2023 and the death doom Robin has produced is good and has been around for well over a decade or so. Finnish bands doing the same thing for a long time. Now with that said I have to say the production on here is immense. The bestial vocals are part cavernous part painful. The riff package consists of diabolical rhythms, pounding riffs and once in a great while some tremolo excitement. 

Like I mentioned before this is nothing new to anyone, yeah like me, into modern European sludgy horrific sounding death doom. And hey how bout what's come out of Australia for example over the past fifteen years. Be that as it may if this is the only album this year doing this kind of destructive mind fuck on reality then I'm in the dark dungeon with it's torture. Hails!

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://gatewayband.bandcamp.com/album/galgendood

THORN - Evergloom review

 

THORN - Evergloom

Transcending Obscurity Records

Around fifteen years ago the thought of a one man death metal act was considered a rarity or to some degree mockery. Nowadays that's not the case especially with all of the technical tools available. It also helps when the one man is also in another band and this is a side project.

The one man here is Brennen Westermeyer from Phoenix, Arizona who performs all instruments. While doing some research I found out that Brennen is also the singer for the band FLUIDS. I have a NUNSLAUGHTER / FLUIDS split cassette which came out last year on Hells Headbangers Records. Well of course I fuckin do, it's NUNSLAUGHTER dammit. 

But anyways as far as this third album by THORN goes. This is what I like to call late night death doom. Brennen's vocals are the brutal package while the music is mostly atmospheric to tranquil heavy. The riffs are fine but the soloing creates a harmonic feeling almost as if this is psych. I mean "Thanatos Basileos" pushes the gambit on the peyote induced DM idea. The final cut and the title track reinforces the whole trip idea. 

In the end I wished I'd smoke weed nowadays instead of still being a speed freak and beer drinker. This THORN  album is perfect for a death metal pot smoker. 

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://thorndm.bandcamp.com/album/evergloom

RUNEMAGICK - Beyond the Cenotaph of Mankind review

 

RUNEMAGICK - Beyond the Cenotaph of Mankind

Hammerheart Records

Once again Hammerheart Records breaths new life into an old band that I like. RUNEMAGICK were a damm good Swedish death doom act from the late 1990's. Actually they started out earlier in the decade but their debut full length release, The Supreme Force of Eternity, came out in 1998. The band put out three classic albums, in my not so humble opinion, on Century Media Records from 1998 to 2000. 

After that it was pretty much silence for me at least. The band kept going on releasing a handful of albums over the years on Norway's Aftermath Music. Unfortunately I was not following a long. It wasn't until 2018 when I rekindled my love for this band when I heard that year's newest one Evoked from Abysmal Sleep. Yeah the title of the album speaks volumes as well as the music. The follow up Into Desolate Realms from 2019 was decent. But now after another long wait we now have Beyond the Cenotaph of Mankind. 

What you've got here is a six song release that comes across just as dangerous sounding as the band was back in the day. But there's this thick menacing atmosphere prevailing upon everything. Mainman Nicklas Rudolfsson's (guitar & vocals) always had a death doom vision which was epic, powerful and driving. The combination of his deep diabolical vocals and driving hypnotic riffs sets you on a wild ride.   

Along for that one is bassist Emma Rudolfsson who has stuck with RUNEMAGICK since 2000. Her bass lines are magnificent on here. Next up you've got Jonas Blom who use to be on drums back in the glory days. But now is supplying guitar work which slides in like a dynamic malice. And of course Daniel Moilanen an amazing drummer for Katatonia is here. 

RUNEMAGICK in 2023 is in a word majestic. I mean here's a band that has learned the finesse of including atmospheric tech style into the old school death metal framework. They haven't moved beyond the threshold of what they know how to do best. Yes this is slow crushing death doom with a touch of groove, some cool moments that ride along and plenty of punishing vocals. I'm glad to be back with ya.

https://www.hammerheart.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://runemagick.bandcamp.com/album/beyond-the-cenotaph-of-mankind-2

CTHULHUSS - Obliteration Of Souls review

 

CTHULHUSS - Obliteration Of Souls

Old Temple

So do you have any more room on your LP/CD shelves for a section designated towards death doom bands who are into Lovecraftian themes. Personally I just include em with everything else that's death doom. But let's be honest here. If this Polish band's name didn't set off your alarm bells to what they're all influenced by then you're a novice. 

This is the second album by CTHULHUSS. Their first one, Cthulhu Cult, came out a few years ago. Personally I'd like to come up with my own H.P. Lovecraft thoughts on a band's music then be told to my face what they're into. But this band (well there are no members listed) have some great qualities for a DM style which others have done to death. No pun intended of course.

This Polish band does the whole death doom style justice. At times you think they're just playing by the genre numbers. And then they'll throw in some twists which makes your excitement spark. CTHULHUSS like to insert plenty of chaotic time changes as well as drum work runs which make their song craft generate interest. 

The vocals are on par over the top with basic low tone spoken word parts added to the already harsh tones. There's plenty of lead work melodies running over the crunchy riff work. The bass on here is thick sounding as well as menacing. I believe Cthulhu would give em a chance as his house band.

http://www.oldtemple.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://oldtemple.bandcamp.com/album/cthulhuss-obliteration-of-souls

CORPSESSED - Succumb To Rot

 

CORPSESSED - Succumb To Rot

Dark Descent Records

Alright it's time for a "bias alert" because I'm an honest SOB. I'm a long time fan of Dark Descent Records. My CD collection shows it. Hell my death metal CD collection shows it. I mean years ago in the end of year favorites I'd rank the label number one simply because every release I heard I bought and they would be in my top favorites. 

Although of late, say the past three years, I've only gotten four releases a year by em. So when I saw this album by Finland's CORPSESSED come in for review, I was like waitaminute. I went into the stacks and pulled out their Abysmal Thresholds from 2014. Yeah another Dark Descent Records release. But hey I've also got Impetus of Death from 2018. I missed out on the band's last one, Beyond Abysmal Thresholds, from 2019.

Be that as it may here we have another cool album by CORPSESSED who are purveyors of the old school Finnish death metal/death doom and gloom style. Imagine vocals sung by a bear just awakened after hibernation. You got riffs and rhythms that trudge along like a hungry beast. This is horrific sounding death doom hunting to eat you. I mean "Death Stench Effluvium" give me a break!

What we have here are eight cuts of relentless stench driven hostility. And I love every thirty-six plus minutes of it. CORPSESSED have been around for fifteen years now. To me this is the best they've ever done. 

https://www.darkdescentrecords.com/shop/

LISTEN HERE:

https://darkdescentrecords.bandcamp.com/album/succumb-to-rot

DRUID LORD – Relics Of The Dead review

 

DRUID LORD – Relics Of The Dead 

Hells Headbangers

I first learned about this Orlando, Florida four piece death doom act back in 2011. They did a split release with WOODEN STAKE. Now I liked the WOODEN STAKE song on that 7"er, obviously. DRUID LORD's contribution was decent. So here we are around a decade later and this is the band's third full length release. 

Musically DRUID LORD are the pungent stench of a rotted corpse. Listening to this reminds me of an Italian horror flick called Zombie from 1979. Not a great flick at all but the zombies who climbed out of the grave were sick looking decomposed pieces of shit. 

This album does come across as a sick fuckin piece of rotting filth. Most of the time the rhythms are at a snail's pace which a few variations. Once in a while a guitar solo will dive in like a bolt of lightning. The vocals by Tony Blakk are typical death doom deep harsh style with some growls. Not too different from what you remember from a few Peaceville Records' vets. In the end it's decent.

https://shop-hellsheadbangers.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://druid-lord.bandcamp.com/

ENCOFFINATION / ROTTING KINGDOM - Wretched Enigma of Salvation Split CD review

 

ENCOFFINATION / ROTTING KINGDOM - Wretched Enigma of Salvation Split CD

Selfmadegod Records

Well this was a rare treat since I like both bands on this split. I've got a couple of releases by both bands. And I've said some great things about these bands in the past. 

I got into ENCOFFINATION, from Atlanta, GA, quite a few years ago and became a huge fan. The musicians in ENCOFFINATION have also played in many other bands I like. As far as ROTTING KINGDOM, from Lexington, KY, go I learned about them a few years back and thought they were fuckin amazing. 

So what we have here is a split by two cool US death doom acts contributing two cuts each. First off ROTTING KINGDOM's two cuts show off their love of early English death doom. But they punch it to a personal level. They are great being heavy and downright ferocious. Then their melodic side comes in with so much atmosphere and guitar soloing that you get taken on a ride. I love what this band does here as well as their past stuff.

Then there's ENCOFFINATION who on here are pure old school US style death doom. Their two cuts are hostile filth set to a slow abusive pace. I like the first cut. "Gloriously Decomposed". Their second cut, "Agonal Soul", is decent. Given that I'd say that I like the ROTTING KINGDOM side better. 

https://selfmadegod.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://selfmadegod.bandcamp.com/album/wretched-enigma-of-salvation

HOODED MENACE - The Tritonus Bell review

 

HOODED MENACE - The Tritonus Bell

Season of Mist

Well if you thought this Finnish death doom act was channeling their inner early MY DYING BRIDE respect on their last full length, Ossuarium Silhouettes Unhallowed, from 2018 then you're gonna love this one. As I've said before I have been a fan of their's since 2010's Never Cross the Dead. And with that said I was a hard sell when they started changing their sound as well as band members. But in the end I love the direction they have gone. 

With that said imagine a band that comes away sounding like MY DYING BRIDE, KATATONIA and KING DIAMOND minus the high pitched vocals? It helps having Andy LaRocque as a producer for that latter influence. Oh yeah and it still keeps a partial amount of their past death doom destructive quality. So the key to this new HOODED MENACE album is a balance as well as an adventurous nature to their song craft.

The Tritonus Bell is a perfect example of extreme metal's beauty and bestial method. The harsh and heavy riffs plus menacing cave beast vocals are there to punish. While melodies thick with atmosphere and majestic guitar soloing flutters in and out. Then all of that changes sides to bring about more excitement. All in all a perfect listening pleasure by these Finns.

https://www.season-of-mist.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hoodedmenace.bandcamp.com/

THE SLOW DEATH - Siege review

 

THE SLOW DEATH - Siege 

Transcending Obscurity Records

What we have here true believers in the realm of death doom is an Australian super group of sorts. A bunch of these musicians play in or have played in bands I'm quite familiar with. For example there's drummer Yonn McLaughlin who's in NAZXUL and PESTILENTIAL SHADOWS. One of their vocalists (she also does keyboards), Mandy Andresen, was in MURKRAT. I was a huge fan of her vocal style back in 2008 when their self titled debut came out. Now I know where she went.

So when I said that Mandy Andresen is one of this band's vocalists then you figured out the obvious. Mandy sings the clean vocals and their male vocalist, Gamaliel, does the growls. But hey it's death doom with Mandy adding some airy keyboard melody which carries along the rhythms as a backdrop. The heavy handed guitars are the staple throughout. Add to that a suffocating atmosphere which is to a point haunting as well as dream inducing. 

Trust me on that one, I had my eyes closed during the song "Pestilence" and I saw trails of Hell behind my eyelids. I guess the safe bet here is that if you're into MOURNFUL CONGREGATION, which this band's guitarist Stuart Prickett use to perform with, then you'll like this. Siege is four songs spanning over an hour's time. But every second I hear Mandy Andresen vocals is worth it. 

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://theslowdeathband.bandcamp.com/album/siege-atmospheric-death-doom-metal

SHAMAEL - Melancholie der Engel review

 

SHAMAEL - Melancholie der Engel

Satanath Records

Imagine if you will a lone musician going up to some forgotten mountain region to record a depressive doom album but had no vocalist. Then suddenly a (choose one: A Bigfoot, Yeti or Sasquatch) came into said cabin to record the vocals needed for this album. Yeah that would sound cool under those circumstances. But SHAMAEL is a one man act from Italy and I don't believe they have any problems with cryto-biology specimens raiding recording studios. 

Yes I said this is death doom with keyboards added to the excess of pain, misery and the utter melancholy of pushing the limits of despair. Pardon me if I don't slit my wrists in welcoming the end. I've gotta type more before this episode ends. Yes this is a one man band with epicness out the wazoo. The bestial vocals are absolutely gross and animal like which brings in the crypto analogy and I've been watching killer Bigfoot movies of late. 

Hey look I'm sure the whole "goth" thing died in a mall near you. Those losers never got MY DYING BRIDE or classic PARADISE LOST. This Italian guy does with more emphasis on pain and misery as opposed to melancholy. This is Raffaele Galasso's debut album. Nice, now kill yourself.

http://www.satanath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://satanath.bandcamp.com/album/sat314-shamael-melancholie-der-engel-2021

MAUSOLEUM / ANATOMIA - Split review

 

MAUSOLEUM / ANATOMIA - Split 

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

Like all cool split releases you pick it up for the one band you know and the second one is a present. As for the former, MAUSOLEUM from Pennsylvania are old favorites as far as death metal goes. I got into em back in 2011 with their second full length, Back from the Funeral. They were one of the cooler sounding acts who were part of that unearthing of the old school death metal style. 

Add to that, something really cool was Horror Pain Gore Death Productions releasing the Cadaveric Displays From The Funeral compilation in 2017. That one contained both of the band's full lengths, Cadaveric Displays of Ghoulish Ghastliness from 2003 and 2011's Back from the Funeral. And if that wasn't good enough there was also a few tracks from a couple of splits they did. It's an amazing compilation that I highly recommend, after you get this one of course. 

As far as this split goes you've got MAUSOLEUM starting things off with four new songs. All I can say is it's about damm time since the last thing they did was six years ago. Then again there's been some changes in their line-up. But even with that happening their sound and style hasn't changed. Musically think old INCANTATION plus some classic Midwest DM sound. Their songs on here are fuckin excellent so welcome back fiends.

Next up is ANATOMIA a two piece death doom act from Japan. This is my first time, I think, hearing this band. My initial thoughts after listening to their three songs on here is obviously I've missed out. ANATOMIA have been around since 2002 and have a huge discography. I'm talking full lengths, EPs and a ton of splits. I'm not exaggerating on the number of splits they have out. 

Musically ANATOMIA make COFFINS sound like hipsters and I like COFFINS but these guys are heavy handed filth when it comes to death doom. Their sound is primitive to the hilt of which I'm a fan of. I would not be surprised if they're sporting MORTICIAN tattoos. So as many times before I look at these splits as wrestling bouts. My decision is it's a fuckin tie because these two bands are a perfect pair for a split release. Although I think this year I'm going to spend some time checking out more from ANATOMIA.

http://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/split-album-2

SULLEN GUEST - Chapter III review

 

SULLEN GUEST - Chapter III

Self Released

Since this is the March ov Death Metal then why not check out some death doom from Lithuania. The first time I listened to this release I was so glad it was after 2 AM. The second time was an early morning and I wasn't into it at all. I mean it was 11 AM, I was still drinking coffee and was not into it. But hey as far as late night melodic death doom goes it's cool. So I ended up playing this late at night after work with a few beers in me. 

Like I said SULLEN GUEST are a melodic death doom act. The songs on here, there's seven but the last cut is an instrumental, are not destructively heavy. I look at it as tranquil darkness that wraps you up like a shroud. It's not too far from the template created by past greats who delved in this sub genre so well. 

Basically the vocals are diabolical whether it's the deadly screams or deep grunts. The bass lines are thick and stand out like being slapped with a two by four. Drum work is subtle for sure. Aside from the also subtle lead guitar melodies, the riffs come across two fold. You get some electric fuzz doom-ness on a few cuts. While most often it's simple heavy yet melancholy riffs. There are a few times I couldn't help but think of early KATATONIA. If that floats your death doom voyage then you'll like it all.

LISTEN HERE:

https://sullenguest.bandcamp.com/