Black Tomb / Crud Split

October 2018 – Unsigned

Two American doom bands of the heavier variant collide, and produce “Doom is Dead”, an aptly-titled split given relative saturation of the genre in recent years. Black Tomb and Crud are here to reanimate the doom zombie, with a healthy modern coating of filth – both in tone and in composition.

Black Tomb take a somewhat more stoner/sludge approach to the split, almost dipping into Sabbath-worship here and there. Leads are what you'd expect from a dirty, down-tempo record – ugly, slow, and fitting. Drums are particularly well mixed, with just that right amount of sizzle on the cymbals – lightly seared, while the meatier riffs feel raw. Conventionally bluesy, as expected from a stoner-leaning band, but not derivative, also as expected from a stoner-leaning band. The Rotting Vault is a heavier version of Black Tomb, setting the tone for the second half of the split.

Crud is much more disgusting, in the best of ways. Their side belongs so deep in the gutter you'd almost expect to taste sewage when the riffs kick in. It's comparable to a slowed-down Lord Mantis, with much heavier vocals – and then they slow down some more. The singer dips into actual gutturals, a sign of things to come. Their bass intro in the second track is repugnant, and opens into the nastiest doom I've heard this year. The lead cuts through the mix, still ever-plodding and with none of the frills. As is tradition, Crud sign out with a minute-long breakdown – or is it a riff? It's hard to tell when everything is slow and heavy.

Comments

Grime - Live

Grime Live – Oct. 2017 The air is heavy, the lights are dim, and the conversations skittle away, hiding in the corners as Grime takes to the stage. Eyes up and hair down, I knew we were in for something good. Grime, the italian sludge act, released their first album in 2013 on the well-known Mordgrimm records. They might be the best-named band I can think of – the unclean buzz of the strings and damp mix of instruments give off a filthy, pock-marked sound, the kind you'd hear from scraping a sewer floor. I didn't know of them until their 2015 record, Circle of Molesters, but they're the kind of band who can do no wrong. The first note hit, and the bass shook me in unholy ways. After staggering a few steps back, I looked up at the stage and saw some of the best lighting since Messuggah. A white backdrop, searchlight-style movement carving the silhouettes of Grime into my retina. Marco, lead guitar, was spectacular in his theatrics. Doubling over in rage and p...

Phrenelith – Desolate Endscape

Phrenelith Desolate Endscape – 2017 Remember when the Internet went crazy for Pissgrave – Suicide Euphoria (Profound Lore Records) back in 2015 ? It's time for a new riot straight from the abyss, and the demon's name is Phrenelith. Born in 2013 in Copenhagen, Phrenelith started their career out with a split with Spectral Voice (Iron Bonehead, 2016), followed shortly by an EP (Chimaerian Offspring – Extremely Rotten Productions, 2017) and a masterpiece of an album, Desolate Endscape (Dark Descent Records, 2017). Desolate Endscape is the kind of album that reminds me why I like death metal – it's inherently primal , evil and intimidating. This record is a massive slab of death metal, dense and heavy and being thrown at your face. The fact that there's zero flourish or unnecessary technicality brings Phrenelith to the forefront of the cavemanesque caverncore scene that's been simmering for the past decade. The entire album drips with ichor, and while ...

Five the Hierophant – Over Phlegeton

Five the Hierophant – Over Phlegeton Dark Essence Records – 2017 There's a rare breed of album which instantly becomes a cult classic, and I can confidently say Over Phlegeton is one of them. Experimental, weird, bizarre, none of these words come close to describing just how extraordinary and interesting this record is. If I had to draw parallels with another band, I'd say it's a heavier, more mature version of Mamaleek, with many similar elements such as the ethnic percussions or non-traditional scales, but with a much darker visage and more detailed composition. There have been incredible avant-garde metal albums using unconventional instruments, but none have been so tactfully used as the saxophone is on Over Phlegeton. Played as a full instrument and not a token nod to some jazzy experimentation, Five the Hierophant explore the extremeties of what the sax can do – from screaming leads floating above the guitars to wailing voices in the wind, passing by hear...

Undergrind Metal

Search This Blog