Phrenelith

Deiquisitor – Apotheosis Revew

Deiquisitor – Apotheosis Revew

“The trio has hovered in the background of a reliably scuzzy death metal scene, falling short of even the modest notoriety achieved by fellow Danes like Undergang, Phrenelith, and Hyperdontia. Apotheosis consists of nine more loogies of old school death, hawked up at the aptly named Phlegm Studios and spat upon the sidewalk in front of your home with consideration for neither property values nor your delicate constitution.” BLEEAARGHH!

Ósserp – Els nous cants de la Sibil·la [Things You Might Have Missed 2022]

Ósserp – Els nous cants de la Sibil·la [Things You Might Have Missed 2022]

“Look at how fucking cute that hydra-bear thing is! I want to give it so many pets and cuddles that it dies from feeling too loved. Unfortunately, such creatures are but a myth, and I shall never know the multi-faced adoration of an adorable lil’ hydra, strong enough to carry me all the way to that ringed planet in the background. Instead, I’ll settle for telling the masses about this grimy, fucked up deathgrind slab by Barcelona quintet Ósserp, entitled Els nous cants de la Sibil·la.” Hail Hydra.

Dead Void – Volatile Forms

Dead Void – Volatile Forms

“I became acquainted with Dead Void through their quiet yet mammoth 2018 demo The Looming Spectre. I was neck deep in the melodic style of death/doom, my only experience with more ominous mutterings consisting of Thergothon or Swallowing, so these Danes’ breed of absolutely devastating death/doom hit me like a ton of slimy bricks. As dead and dripping as the walls of R’lyeh, with a megaton weight that more closely recalled funeral doom, it cranked my excitement meter to a solid 11. When Volatile Forms appeared in the promo dump, I hungrily gobbled it up.” Void if forms removed.

Corpsessed – Succumb to Rot Review

Corpsessed – Succumb to Rot Review

“As one of the more underrated bands in the current cornucopia of cadaveric cavern curators, Corpsessed concoct some of the coolest, catchiest riffs in the business. Succumb to Rot is saturated with such riffs, and makes use of a tried and trve sonic palette to complement them. Thick guitar tones reminiscent of Incantation and Phrenelith; chunky bass guitar; even chunkier drums not dissimilar to those of Tomb Mold; titanic caveman roars; the formula is simple, but it bloody works.” We all have a cadaver in the cavern.

Descent – Order of Chaos Review

Descent – Order of Chaos Review

“If Australia is trying to kill you, then Descent is the club with which it bludgeons its victims. The Brisbane five-piece burst onto the scene in 2018 with Towers of Grandiosity, which worshipped at the altar of the most primitive old-school death metal. But Towers rested too heavily on its Neanderthal influences, failing to make a mark amidst stiff competition from down-under brethren like Faceless Burial, The Plague, and Earth Rot. Descent’s latest attack, Order of Chaos aims to outshine the OSDM riffraff by incorporating weapons from neighboring genres into the band’s arsenal, in defiant response to our review (I assume).” Murder Land.

Phrenelith – Chimaera Review

Phrenelith – Chimaera Review

“Just listen to Desolate Endscape instead. That’s the record you want to hear. Chimaera simply doesn’t measure up to Phrenelith’s debut, a cratonic slab of atrocious death metal that crushed listeners with granitic indifference. Chimaera is nothing of the sort: an unfocused, unfinished, and forgettable record that manages at best to echo Endscape, foggily repeating its shapes without conviction.” Desolate tidings of the end.

Tardus Mortem – Armageddon Review

Tardus Mortem – Armageddon Review

“When the mighty ape (He who reigns forever, Amen) says “I’d like to see a review of Tardus Mortem,” after a few well-deserved tantrums I raced to stuff my earholes with as much of Armageddon as I could. My feet are stamping, but is it because of the tantrum it causes or the groove that it evokes?” Dane death demons.

Ulthar – Providence Review

Ulthar – Providence Review

“Their debut in 2018 was received poorly by the respective probationary writer, noting that it suffered from “conflating incomprehensible fury and aimless blasting with gripping riffs and relentless aggression.” While it was slightly underrated, and this at least demonstrates that not all of the probationary writers were overrating bastards (though all the ones who made the cut are), it was far from essential and hardly suggested that there were great things to come. Enter 2020 and Providence.” New year, new gear.

Azath – Through a Warren of Shadow Review

Azath – Through a Warren of Shadow Review

“I’ve been riding a wave of very good death metal promos recently, and since it would be sheer madness to walk away from the table when you’re beating the house, I’m doubling down. How could I not grab Through a Warren of Shadow, the debut record from Azath, when it has a sweet image of a stately mountain-perched dragon on the cover?” With logic like that, what could go wrong?