Anhedonist - Netherwards
Where has this band been my whole life? Seattle’s Anhedonist present a debut full-length to be reckoned with. The juxtaposition of primal, filth-ridden brutality and cataclysmic, funereal dirges found on Netherwards perfectly defines all that is the Death/Doom genre. This album is strategically crafted —four songs, forty minutes, two Death Metal cuts, two Doom slabs— to leave the listener in a bloodied, broken, and numb state of post-apocalyptic languor. When the band rages on the Death Metal-dominant side of things (“Saturnine” and “Carne Liberatus”), it’s pure Old School bliss. Fans of Autopsy and Incantation take note, this guitar tone and vocal pitch are heavier than 666 tons of human detritus. However, it’s the Doomier tracks (“Estrangement” and “Inherent Opprobrium”) that truly steal the show. The band conjures a desolate atmosphere that swallows hope whole, as the smothering heaviness resonates in your constantly-decaying brain. The slow-motion bludgeonment often lends itself to intoxicating clean guitar passages that recall Disembowelment’s lone masterpiece. These are the moments when Netherwards is at its most haunting. One could argue that the material here is derivative, and that’s a difficult proposal to defend. It is entirely derivative… of shit that kicks ass!
(1) Comment(s)
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Kalashnyx said:
I still need to check out this record. Not a big doomster but I did enjoy their set at Rites of Darkness last year.
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