Ischemic - Ischemic

Ischemic's Stagnation and Woe would naturally be a difficult follow up. With the weight of Ischemic's debut album on their shoulders, Ischemic would have to reach far, be memorable, be pensive, and be brutal to have even the chance of usurping what became a cherished recent release in my listening the past year. Ischemic's self-titled follow up meets the challenge stoically. There are moments of greatness here, particularly the epic closer, "Scattering Garden." Opener "Scabs" is a fine torch-bearer for the album, though does not quite shine as brightly as "Witchcraft". To a certain extent, I understand the reallocation of Ischemic's "Crawl out of Hell" as the song slides in nicely with the other three tracks, however I would have preferred something with wider melodic range to contrast the heft of the death doom present. All in all, I will come back to this record for "Scattering Garden". Ischemic have not yet reached the pinnacle of what they are capable of. Some highlights with my interview with Adam Korchok below:

CTP: Thanks for doing this interview and more thanks for the excellent music you have been putting out with Ischemic. To get the necessary question answered, what is the history of the band’s formation? The lineup has remained fairly stable over the band’s existence.

Adam Korchok: Hey thanks man! Ischemic formed around 2012 in Toronto after our vocalist Isabelle put out an ad on kijiji looking for people interested in doing death/doom music and I (Adam) bit! We pulled together Ty Bontje on second guitar a few months after the other guitarist Mike left to focus on his other band Saprophyte (which Ty was also in) and Anthony came in about a year later. After our first drummer Collin left shortly after the first demo in 2013, we got Chris Orr in on Drums and he would be our thunder god on every other release, leaving after the Stagnation & Woe shows to focus on his family sometime in 2019. That's when Kamble of Mors Verum, a friend of the band for some time, stepped in on drums being our new thunder god for the self-titled album!

CTP: When the band was first formed, what bands or artists were generally discussed as having been an influence and are those same bands still the predominant influence? What new influences or inspirational foci have played a part in Ischemic’s ever advancing sound?

Adam Korchok: At first I would say the bands Autopsy, Katatonia and Hooded Menace drove the direction the band wanted to go in, wanting some of the sinister and violent OSDM vibes of Autopsy, the melancholic melody of early Katatonia and the girth and gloom of Hooded Menace, hoping to balance the various different traits that the genre of death/doom can encompasses. Since then the bands Paradise Lost, Agalloch, Ahab, Conan, later Celtic Frost/Triptykon, Thou, and Krallice have had their influence wiggle into the band's style."

CTP: The songs on Ischemic are long. Longer on average than your other albums by quite a bit and the twenty-two-minute-long final track, “Scattering Garden,” is one of the longer death-doom tracks I can remember of late, matching up with tracks from Ataraxie’s Resignes in terms of length. Did these tracks just get written this way naturally or did you purposefully want to have an album of extended tracks?

Adam Korchok: With the track Scattering Garden, there was definitely a concentrated effort to remain slow, however, its length was really a product of just wanting to have various parts of the songs resolve properly while maintaining that pace. If we had allowed some tracks to go full-throttle blast, and have black or death metal passages like we usually do, I think the length would come down quite a bit. Funnily enough with Scabs, we had the opposite intent- a quick, in and out, Death, Death/Doom assault! Crawl as a re-recording was already pretty long and Illusion of Humanity was already pretty much written when we finished Stagnation and Woe, so it just sort of fell into place at that point as opposed to wanting all the songs to be very long.

CTP: What was different in terms of composition for Ischemic than previous albums? Were you hampered by the Covid pandemic in any way?

Adam Korchok: The pandemic was definitely not helpful, but as most of the songs were written prior to the lockdowns, it only really affected the recording process from my memory, delaying it by 2 or 3 months.

CTP: The cover to Ischemic is a mask. In an interview with Dreams of Consciousness Podcast, Adam said that he felt that the cover symbolized Ischemic as a band. What is your thoughts on this perspective? Can you give some insight into how the cover came about and why it was chosen as the cover?

Adam Korchok: We got the idea for the cover after playing a house party show with the band Greber at the house of a friend of ours, Marcela. She's a great plaster, mask artist and she displayed a lot of her work along her walls, and when we saw her masks in the shadows amongst the smoke from weed and smoke machines we fell in love with the concept. I still agree that it represents the ugly elements of Ischemic: the crushing heaviness, the unsettling gloom, and the disfiguring violence.". You can even buy a copy of that mask off https://www.marcelasbrainjuice.com/

CTP: Isabella and Tyler both provide some of the vocal elements. Who determines vocal parts? Does Isa as Frontwoman take the lead in arrangement for vocals or is this a more collaborative role?

Adam Korchok: Tyler only provides backing vocals, so it is entirely Isabelle you hear on all our records, with Ty adding some backdrop very occasionally.

CTP: Speaking of Isabella, I would feel confident in saying she’s the most impressive female vocalist I’ve heard in an extreme metal band for quite some time and she gives even the best male vocalists in death metal a run for their money in terms of intensity and range. There’s not really a question here. I just wanted to say she is a diamond in the coal mine.

Adam Korchok: Absolutely agreed, although I find it more impressive that she is that guttural despite being super tiny!

CTP: What is next for Ischemic? Will you be touring the US? New music? Any plans to come down towards New Jersey or New York City?

Adam Korchok: Currently working on reviving Frigid Descent and writing music for an EP we plan to record some time in the summer. We definitely would love to make it to the US and New York would be an easy one, but I think we're waiting on seeing how the pandemic balances out, if it does at all, before we start planning any cross-border shows, unfortunately.

Full Interview Available in Upcoming Issue of Contaminated Tones Zine. 

V/A - The Record of Armageddon

Thrashback Records' The Record of Armageddon compilation is a heartfelt concept on the surface. Thrashback Records owner Eric Hoffman, digging through an old box of fanzines comes across The Book of Armageddon penned by the inimitable Ed Farshtey and decides to release a compilation record similar to the old compilations put out in the 80's to spread interest in new bands. The release would be called, well, The Record of Armageddon. Eric and Ed would each pick half the bands and Farshtey would write liner notes about each band. Collaborative efforts aren't uncommon, but I can't think of a similar release to this end at all. It's a bit original, and it's a bit unique, and these days, these are attributes in short supply. Initially, my biggest interest in this release is really the fact that it's something Ed Farshtey - who I personally know - is involved with. After listening, that is still my main interest in the record. 

Otherwise the tracks picked don't offer much in the way of repeat listens. This is not like the legendary Metal Massacre compilations where almost all the tracks were as essential listening then as they are now. This isn't like From The Megavault which includes the only Imperious Rex track in existence that I can find and surrounded by obscure classics each worth their own wax. This isn't Born To Metalize, the only place you'll find tracks from Tortured Dog and affordably own tracks from The beast. This isn't the early Relativity / Earache Promo samplers from the early 1990's with iconic tracks from basically every band on the label. Instead, we are given a compilation which features no exclusive tracks (I don't consider an exclusive remix all that exclusive), two tracks previously released on other Thrashback Records' releases, and modern tracks from bands with older pedigrees. The songs aren't good enough to warrant spinning the whole compilation on it's own.

False Prophet open the compilation with generic death metal blasting in "Prayers of Emptiness". Schizophrenia's track is decent Death and Possessed worship with a hint of thrash and their inclusion of "Perpetual Perdition" is my favorite on this compilation. I am not clamoring to go out in search of their full length, Recollections of the Insane, at this very second, but it's a strong track. Amboog-a-lard and Solstice follow with tracks I've covered elsewhere and the presence of them here does little to change my original thoughts about the tracks. Side B yields Yellowtooth's "Atrocity", solid if uninspiring sludge, Divine Treachery's "Patterns", an interesting bass-forward modern thrash composition that might elicit several listens before wearing out it's schtick, Swedish Groove metal band Methane with "Declare Chaos", a politically charged cut, and finally "Flesh and the Digital", B-League material from Luna in Sanguinem which fails to impress.

Once again, Thrashback Records is trying to do interesting themed releases and compilations. The packaging is really nice, as is all of Thrashback Records' releases. Included is a glossy reprint of the The Book of Armageddon's cover and an insert with thoughts on each band by Ed Farshtey himself. My promo copy came with a certificate of authenticity, which is really above and beyond. Ultimately, though, I can't help but feel that there just isn't much interest in these compilation formats. I can't think of a single time anyone has ever asked me if I have listened to the newest so-and-so compilation from such-and-such label. Is there really a clamor for this type of material? I've given this compilation plenty of air time and don't see myself returning to it. The same thoughts occur to me for compilations like those from Metal on Metal records, etc. Other than Schizophrenia, I am more likely to pass by these bands now than before hearing their tracks here. I guess you could call this compilation a failure, then, in terms of advertising new bands. For the optimists out there, you could call this a successful compilation by warning listeners what to steer clear of. I'd only recommend this to fans of modern groove-oriented death and thrash metal who still listen to compilations. Where that audience is, though, I'll never know. 

Moanaa - Embers

Moanaa, of Poland, offer listeners a spacious blend of post-metal and sludge which will appeal to plenty of fans with discerning taste for Isis and Pelican inspired undulations, however my first and last thoughts after a multitude of listens to their 2021 release, Embers, in the car while driving, in the home office on stereo while relaxing, and in headphones for dedicated listening have culminated with, "this makes for decent background music." This is really not Moanaa's fault but seems to be some sort of inert attribute of the post-metal experience. Because when I have a difficult time judging or connecting to a release I revert to the standpoint of trying to determine the music's purpose - what it's trying to convey - and what I feel Post-Metal bands offer on the majority of releases is contradictory. 

Purpose can be difficult to determine when the promotional copy comes with no lyrical content or subject matter to connect with. The cover depiction is either an exceptionally large bird in a regular sized coffin, a regular sized bird in an exceptionally small coffin, or a bird encased in amber but poorly represented. I am leaning towards the second of those options. Moanaa doesn't strike me as a band who would enlarge a bird in a comic fashion to fit into a regular sized coffin; Post-Metal bands have always come across to me as retaining a particular zeal for seriousness and supposed "artistic enlightenment". The meaning? Perhaps Moanna is trying to show that something small and overlooked in our lives should still be shown reverence and dignity. It is after all birds that protected man in the coal mines from dangerous gasses and it was birds that carried messages distances before we had to shell out exuberant wads of cash to the USPS or FedEx or UPS. Another interpretation: The death of freedom and independence. 

But throughout this release these ideas are not represented musically. I don't know how they would be represented musically, to be honest, but I don't feel anything at all listening to this album in the emotional / intellectual sense. In fact, my main problem with Post-Metal in general is that musically, there is an incompatibility to it all. It's music that wants to be heavy with big chugging mathematical precision but simultaneously washes it all in reverb and flange and echo. So angularity is eroded through effects to the point where the tones are awash in softness and comfort. This is why it makes such excellent background music - it simply melts into the air in this wispy cotton-candyesque fashion. Even when the musicianship is excellent, such as in Moanaa's case, it is lost as everything falls into the background. Once again, the purpose is confused. Without lyrical content to narrate, transitions from feathery movements to the wooden palm muted chugging make little sense. 

Embers offers little in the way of emotional power and variety. In particular there is not enough range melodically. After opener "Nothing" and follow-up track "Lie", you could essentially put the record away and you would not have missed a melodic movement. More differentiation between the tracks would help bring the overall product to the foreground in my attention. The musicianship is very good and you do feel that the band as a whole was very involved together in assembling this record. The songs are paced well on the record - evidence of a lot of time spent fine-tuning their final product. I particularly liked focusing in on bassist Lukasz Tomiczek's parts which are noticeable and a major element in the song's movements. He pairs well with drummer Kamil Gebala's reserved yet creative percussion. Moanaa offer some interesting time signatures in "Triad", a song which I believe is written in 3/4, as well as "Lie" which itself seems to fall into 6/8. Songs escaping the 4/4 meter helps Embers sound fresh and vibrant rhythmically. Vocalist K-Vass has a solid growl and is adequate for his responsibilities. Guitarists Lukasz Kursa and Maciej Kosarz show a swath of techniques throughout but their playing is delicate, even during the heaviest moments of the record, which once again hearkens to how at odds the genre is to me.  

If there was a song here that comes close to completely dissolving the two immiscible elements of echoing reverb and chugging angularity "Inflexion" would be the track to study. Opening with a quick transition from reverb-laden clean guitars to a verse section highlighted with Gebala's signature percussion and the lignified guitar tone of the album's heavier passages, the rest of the track ebbs between softer and harsher. The song has a general sense of surrender and catharsis; the spacey yet hard-edged tone a representation of the hardship of letting go and the weightlessness of unburdening oneself. I also do like "Embers", the title track and it's inventive use of rhythmic motifs such as in the intro with the snare following the kick for a simple yet unique opening drum pattern. The snare follows the kick drum percussively throughout the rest of the track.  

Ultimately, Moanaa's Embers is a very good serviceable Post-Metal record for fans of the genre and I would recommend it for people that seek their treasure in it's trove - it may offer them something that it doesn't offer me. Aside from further reinforcing my feelings about certain elements of the genre, I can't say that I didn't enjoy the music. Moanaa do show a lot of creative ideas and witty songwriting ideas throughout the album which are interesting from an objective musical standpoint. For those early morning rides to work, the album was a soothing precursor to the often intense work-day, with it's soft atmosphere reflecting the mist rolling across Monmouth Battlefield and Tenant Cemetery. I can see myself coming back and listening again to this. Even after all the time spent on it, there is still more here to find interesting and listen for - something that can't be said for a lot of other records. 

Ischemic - Stagnation and Woe

Two years after the very strong All Paths Lead Nowhere, an EP which I stated showed a band maturing and developing quickly into something of their own, Canada's Ischemic follow through with their debut full length, Stagnation and Woe, an album which not only recalls the inventive melodic tendencies which were at play on it's predecessor, but really necessitates their inclusion on extreme metal fans' must-watch lists for the foreseeable future. Stagnation and Woes shows a band that is still peaking creatively and musically in all aspects. In truth, the only stumbling point for me on this full length is in the packaging, being absent of lyrics or deeper thematic interest and that is such a footnote that I am glad to already move on to greener pastures.

Ischemic showed their melodic ingenuity and maturity previously on a track like "Barren", but on Stagnation and Woe Ischemic truly find themselves experimenting with melody to a vast degree from all angles. Opener "Witchcraft" plays with numerous melodic vistas, not only during the suffix to the massive doomy chugging main riff but through the sweeping triumphant middle section which marries with the earlier traditional doom vibes. The familiar cadences of the opening track are contrasted with the incredibly dissonant and tense melodies on "Carrion Kingdom" which is abrasive and ugly and yet, especially during the chorus motif, cathartic. "Marasmus" the album's longest gift, exists between these first two tracks in terms of melodic attitude. "Sigil", the instrumental interlude at the halfway point depicts a band actively seeking fresh ideas in the melody and rhythm departments while "Cerebral Pestilence" explores a tumbling tepid and indifferent feeling. "Filth" has a tendency towards a dark ascending frivolity. Final track "Murk Within Marrow" is a little bit of an oddball throughout it's sludgy (Eyehategod / Neurosis) guitar motifs.

The ugliness of these melodies and the innate tension that results as Ischemic shift between the ugly and the serene reminds me of tracks like Hivelord's "Atavius Lich" where dissonance and angular melodies reigned supreme. Perhaps there are elements of Deathspell Omega and Blut Aus Nord to be sorted out or considered as well. The present doomy-ness is more akin to Ataraxie's chugging behemoth Anhedonie than genre milestones like Antithesis of Light which rely on an expansive atmospheric foundation. And so, I get the feeling that there is a particular appreciation for bands from the French repertoire overall and while there are movements that are laced with melancholy and sadness, I don't find the overt "Gothic" feel of the UK Doom-Death lineage. There is also a definite influence to be found from the Cascadian Black Metal scene.

Stagnation and Woe's swift flow is another area which Ischemic have capitalized on. Simply put, the pacing is pristine. Perhaps one of the most thoughtfully arranged track listings I can think of recently, which is especially important for Ischemic and plays into their hands, due to the variety found in the songs. The more recognizable forms found in the opener attract attention and delineate the overall musical elements. This opens the ear palette to "Carrion Kingdom"'s dissonance, experimentation, and up-tempo briskness. Marasmus, the longest track is set against these two opening heavy hitters and separated from the second half of the album by the cleansing instrumental "Sigil". After listeners' ears have been 'reset', the album slowly picks up again with "Cerebral Pestilence" before "Filth", Stagnation and Woe's shortest track, which comparatively speeds by to the final song, the sludgy but hasty "Murk Within Marrow". 

The individual performances are all worthy of attention as well. While the cumulative of all is impressive, listening for the individual performances yields plenty of enjoyment as well. Bassist Anthony Abbatangelo chooses smart moments to stand out, such as on "Carrion Kingdom" and especially "Marasmus", where he lends needed highlights to the otherwise lengthy exposé. Guitarists Adam Korchok and Tyler Bontje are a strong tandem both rhythmically and harmonically, especially noticeable in headphones where the stereo panning pushes their respective playing to noticeable extremes. Drummer Chris Orr makes a lot of interesting usage of toms and cymbals in his patterns and his creative percussion is right at home compositionally, though I wish the kick drum was louder and more pronounced. Vocals are shared by Tyler and Isabelle Tazbir but it's Isabelle who shines as Frontwoman. She harnesses the intensity and character needed to allow the songs feel dimensional and dynamic. Mixing low and high vocals as growls, screams, and grunts the emotive quality is powerful and convincing. I could swear I heard some background bleed in a couple spots, but the fact that I'm not sure means that I still give the production here very high ratings. 

Going back and reading my thoughts on All Paths Lead Nowhere, after writing this review, it's surprising how prophetic my assessment seemed to be on the direction the band would take. Prescience aside, the comparable bands I listed there (Ataraxie, Hivelords, Evoken) were recalled in writing my assessment of Stagnation and Woe again without remembering that I had linked them previously. To me, it's telling that a band can progress in their own style, yet retain noticeable influences as previous releases, and still sound themselves. Stagnation and Woe truly has impressed me for it's breadth and attention to details often lacking in less developed projects' premature debut albums. Ischemic show that working out the kinks on demos and EPs allows the release of a full length to be regarded with a greater amount of attention and consideration. For Ischemic, this extra attention and consideration has payed them dividends, as Stagnation and Woe should be considered a top-tier release for extreme metal fans.

Ossuaire - Mortes Fables

France's Nihilistic Holocaust once again delivers an exceptional rerelease of the obscure. This time the full length from Ossuaire, a French Death Metal trio who's Mortes Fables surfaced in 2010 and then submerged forever into the abyss of unknown murk that so often obscures worthwhile material. Rooted firmly in old school USDM, a blend of Morbid Angel's Domination and Immolation's Dawn of Possession, those looking for quality underground death metal in this vein would surely be impressed by the twisted rhythms, abnormal harmonies, and Azagthothian lead work. It would be a fair assessment to claim there are the markings of Erosion of Sanity era Gorguts in the structural and pacing of tracks. The 2009 recording was originally self-released on digipak; the cassette format's durability and layout is a nice addition to collections and, as always is the case with the format, should better suit the nostalgic Death Metal fan than a digi-pak, even if the J-card provides only rudimentary information. 

The release reproduces several excellent 2009-recorded tracks such as the opener "Le Siege", the album best "Feeria In Anus Deflore" or the superb capstone to the album, the devilish instrumental "R.S.P.E". Opening track, "Marche Noire" is essentially a two minute intro, setting a dark and nocturnal tone through sample usage, howling winds, and the brooding guitar lines which lead into "Le Siege", the true album kick-off. Truthfully, the top track is a toss-up between "Le Siege" and "Feeria...". This is not to detract from the other two tracks present, "Liber Mortis" and "In Scatorks Excrementis" which are ripe with interesting ideas as well. 

The guitar playing of duo Fred and Groms is a major highlight, as creative leads and details are a major factor in elevating songs from purely foundational rhythms to complete and evocative constructs. Bassist Vince, at first, does not seem to be adding a lot to the mix, however careful inspection reveals that his booming on-the-edge-of-speaker-capacity tone carries a mass of weight filling out the bottom end of the album mix. Most impressive to me, though, is Drummer Kyste who doubles as vocalist. his drumming remains energetic, creative, and precise throughout. His deep bellowing vocals are top notch as well. I'm sure in a live setting, the combination was quite the spectacle. Recommended!

Gorgon - French Spring Gigs

Chris from Gorgon, who's new album Traditio Satanae will be getting a full review with an interview to appear in the next issue of Contaminated Tones Zine, asked me to share some flyers for him of some Spring gigs which are confirmed for the next couple of months. If I lived in France, I would be at all three. 

Ireful - The Walls of Madness

Thrash. That could be the whole review, but it would do a disservice to these Italians to not differentiate between their approach to the genre, because what is to be found on their debut EP, The Walls of Madness will lead the listener not to the dollar menu of Bay-Area thrash, but to a much more refined group of influences. Yes, there will always be influence from Slayer and Dark Angel at the more extreme end of the thrash spectrum, but Ireful share more in common with Voivod, Sodom, or Razor than they do with Metallica or Megadeth. Guitarist Matteo Thunderbolt: "Actually we wanted to be an hybrid between Bay Area style and Teutonic one. You can find many influences, sure stuff like Exodus, Vio-Lence, Kreator, Tankard…". Ireful bring the right type of attitude along with their thrash. It is aggressive, serious, in your face thrash with grit and growl. There is a sense of creativity throughout the tracks which elevates this EP above many newcomer bands. 

The album opens with "Panzerschreck" which may give off an Agent Orange or Tapping The Vein Sodom vibe from it's opening rhythmic chugging riff. High speed picking ensues thereafter; a whizzing blur of aggressive and angry riffs and gritty harsh vocals sets a nasty attitude which carries throughout. "Fear and Loathing On U-96" offers the type of creative elements previously mentioned in both name, as well as in the vocal approach of Anselmo Medusa, who imbues his performance with a bit of the psychotic and insane mentality expected of a song which seems to reference the excellent Depp led cult classic. "Sicko's Short Fuse" has the tang of Rrröööaaarrr Voivod in it. "Rusty Nail" is a favorite of mine. It's under two minutes long, reeks of atonal violence, and reminds me most of Aspid and Voivod. The EP ends with the title track, "The Walls of Madness." Another scorcher, it shows a more mature structure through the central instrumental portion of the song. 

I asked Matteo about the production of the album. "The Ep was recorded in multitrack way, but honestly we’re satisfied for the result we obtained. Our sound engineer Marco has perfectly understood the sound we wanted. For me, there’s no reason at all to record Old School Thrash with modern sounds, but that’s our humble opinion." It's hard to disagree with Matteo on that final point, even if it can be hard to objectively cite what a 'modern sound' is, in terms of thrash. But the Old School Thrash sound is something intrinsically known by metal fans; spectral in a way. We know when that tone is there and when it is not there, but that 'knowing' exists in a subjective realm. It's possible to objectively detail it using specific language regarding scooped mids, Marshal JCM-800 cabinets, and 'the thrash beat', but that all would be missing the mark somehow. Ireful nail the objective thrash requirements but more importantly have discovered that integral subjective element that often evades bands. 

So I really love this demo. It's refreshing to hear a thrash band that only likes to play really fast. I can't think of the last time a traditional thrash band omitted a mid-paced or slower track completely and recorded everything as if they were guzzling rocket fuel. For an EP, this speed works great, and there is a lot packed into the five tracks. Twin lead guitarists M. Thunderbolt and Fabrizio Madpig are impressive throughout with leads and solos throughout the twenty-three minute EP. My beautiful highlighter blue tape copy came from Life After Death but I believe there are a few different CD versions out there as well as a 12" vinyl press. I will not be thinking twice about future releases from Ireful. 

Hell's Bomber - Raidhearsal

Raidhearsal is the debut demo from the Croatian trio of miscreants, Hell's Bomber. While I was proud to release their split tape with Whipstriker which had an excellent gruff and underground Speed Metal production and great songs, that was based solely on the material which was sent to me for the split. I saw Raidhearsal floating around in a distro and figured I'd grab it not knowing what to expect from the trio on the release or even where it fell in their catalog. Raidhearsal is exactly what it says it is: a fire-at-will rehearsal recording of three tracks which are meant for the underground maniacs who love the nastiest and dirtiest of the genre. Luckily, I am such a fan of this lo-fi, adrenaline-fueled, in-the-room production. A release like this will not make year end lists, it won't impress people, and it doesn't propose to showcase Hell's Bomber for a record deal. I don't think Violator, Motorbeast, or Bomber really care much about any of that anyway.

Raidhearsal - and other lo-fi underground demos - has a singular purpose: to capture an entirely unfettered rehearsal recording and allow the world to connect with a band as they are in the flesh and spirit. It's an invitation to pound beers in the room with the band, if you will. It's a band's way of inviting their die-hard fans around the fire-pit. Musically, not much needs to be explained. The songs are short, punk-structured Speed Metal for fans of the nastiest of the genre like Abigail and Midnight's earliest material, but underground fans of Motorhead or Speedwolf who don't mind dirtier production are likely to at least have an enjoyable listen, especially to a track like "War Ripper" which is the best present here. When the dust has settled, three songs have blitzed by like a Panzer and there's not much you really need to complain about or should complain about. An in-the-moment enjoyment is what it's about.  Not all reviews need to be long-winded - this is one such occasion. 

Sarmat - RS-28

Sarmat's RS-28 is modern Death Metal in the Polish lineage. The cold mechanical tonal vista found in Behemoth's Demigod era or Decapitated's Negation / Organic Hallucinosis is to be found in Sarmat's blend of blasts and zizzing guitars. Vocalist Łukasz Kobusiński agrees that if there were to be definable Polish Death Metal characteristics, I have mostly nailed them down. "During the promotion process of our RS-28 album I got a few opinions similar to yours. For me, as a guy born in Poland and living here for all my life till now it's hard to judge if the statement is true or not. I don't see too many specific characteristics in Polish death metal... Maybe the mechanical mood and industrial atmosphere are the Polish remarkable signs, but I wouldn't be able to categorize the band playing death metal this way as the one coming out of Poland only because of the fact." 

RS-28 demands active listening. Where much of Death Metal's landscape can be listened to from afar and receive reasonable clarity into what makes the genre tick, Sarmat is best enjoyed in lockstep with each pace forward of the album. It is, perhaps, problematic that RS-28 could at times become boring when relied on as background ear-fodder, but it also speaks to the detailed musical ideas present that it is not such an easily digested slab of extreme metal. Łukasz delved into the composition of the album for me. "The main composer was Daniel, who is also the composer of the new stuff for the second album. He created the music and did preliminary drum parts arrangements (set them in the computer program). He recorded the guitar parts, the bass guitar parts and VST instruments parts at his home. Then the session drummer (Krzysztof Klingbein, known for his work as a live musician for Vader and plenty of session recordings for many bands) recorded the drum parts at his rehearsal room, which is also his recording room. At this time the core of the album was established."

Regarding his approach to the vocals and the crisp professional production of RS-28. "I was asked to do this (record vocals - Orion) when compositions were finally recorded, so there was no chance to change anything – I had to do my job without any excuses and attempts to rearrange or re-record a single sound. My vocal style is rather death metal one than any 'other metal vocal style one', so at this part of creation we have reached the foundation of the Sarmat band style to the RS-28 album. We were pleased by the fact that Arkadiusz “Malta” Malczewski (known from his work as a live sound engineer for Behemoth and for his previous works as a studio sound engineer for that band) agreed to do this job for us. There were plenty of mixed versions and we were seeking the best one for some time. This third part allowed us to create the final version of the album we are writing about now."

Sarmat excels in the sharp usage of bright melodic highlights, an interesting lack of transitional filler, and in guitarists' Daniel Szymanowicz and Krzysztof Kopczeński's ability to consistently find discomforting and tense melodic movements. Drummer Krzysztof Klingbein is impressive throughout, offering endless blast-beats and double bass intensity for the shifting sands that are the guitarist's melodies. Łukasz offers a top-tier vocal performance. Deep bellowing growled vocals which are on the lower end but short of guttural. Malczewski's production on RS-28 complements these stylistic tendencies of the band and the choices Sarmat has made with respect to their instrument tone appears well thought. A grating hollow guitar tone allows melodies and notes that may otherwise be drowned out in a thicker tone cut through the rest of the mix while playing to the mechanized drumming. The overall effect is one of complete cohesion and purpose.

"Evilution" is the album's strongest track and epitomizes the usage of all these finely honed elements. A short tense intro erupts unexpectedly into the albums most memorable verse riff; down-tuned rubbery guitars underlie short bursts of higher-octave ringing cadence that leave tense phantom harmonies lingering throughout the track. Riffs simply turn into each other perfectly, like perfectly sized bolts into their corresponding nuts; no pauses, stops, gaps, shifts - just moments folding over into new moments. Łukasz's vocals are perfectly placed and play counter in many ways to the mechanical ceaseless drumming. They are the only natural rhythm present. Łukasz's has his own thoughts on the song and the role his vocals play. "Well, it wasn't my favorite track at the beginning. Neither it is now, but now I may say that it's a very good one for playing live. It gives a moment for taking a breath between much faster songs and it has a sinister atmosphere that is very eligible for live shows of a death/black metal band such as Sarmat. As for vocals arranged to this particular composition there is something unique in them. Despite it's rather a middle tempo song with strong, but monumental and not very aggressive vocals it includes the fastest vocal part on the album. I tried to emphasize the diversity of the riffs in the track by creating vocal parts different to each other in one track. I think I have achieved this effect.

The greatest concern I have with Sarmat's overall presentation across RS-28 is the general simplicity of the songs. While it's true that there are loads of nuanced details and layers to explore, the general structure is often elementary. The lack of transitional segments throughout in addition to a consistent usage of no more than three or four main riffs in each song, even if the songs are short, may be a turn off for seasoned listeners who prefer a more complex linear composition or a narrative feel to their death metal. As a whole, however, this simplicity gives heightened impact and tension, as the listener waits for something to happen. There is an emotional bleakness to this lack of structural movement which is calming and unnerving at the same time. The album cover depicting children in gas masks echoes this bleakness and pessimism. The digipak physical release is nicely put together and is as professional as a digipak release can be assembled with a full booklet including lyrics and band photos. It is clear that the Sarmat trio of Daniel, Krzysztof, and Łukasz is serious about the project but Łukasz cites there is only one emotion that Sarmat is aiming at with their music. "Fear is the main emotion which I would like to be felt by every listener to the RS-28 album."