The Dead - Ritual Executions (2010)

Full Length, Diabolical Conquest Records
2010



Whenever I get fed up of the brooding chaos in my daily life, I always try to find something splenderous and compelling. An entity which would simply give a straight thud onto my face with a full frontal blow and breaks my cranial chords. Yeah, sounds like a whacky idea but being an extreme metal fanatic, I can't expect something whiny and chirpy to enrapture my wicked senses. I was hunting greedily for a similar object a few months back when I chanced to obtain this CD called as ''Ritual Executions'' by ''The Dead''. I didn't exactly know as to what I should expect from that disc and I simply popped it in my player with a child like curiosity, as always. 
After a few seconds, I observed a very despicable swarming sound which was ejaculated by my computer speakers. That ''sound'' soon grew into an intensly gratifying plod of ominous and eerie wall of droning sonic incantations. It began in a very loathsome ritualistic demeanor and I started getting waves of impious contempt as soon as the vocals descended upon my ears. The unholy persecutor of those deranged prophecies announced that ''Never bury your dead'' because ''way down deep, the dead never sleep. Cold graves are restless, so BURN YOUR DEAD!'' Getting hugely impressed by these words of wisdom, I grew totally attentive of the rest of the rituals to follow. The proceedings grew a lot more profound as the first ritual was ceasing towards a very enchanting end.


Totally awe-struck after the first ritual assualt, I turned on to the second one which started in a trance enducing groove which led to a path of infernal damnation. 
Heavily sonorous drums and the abyssic grunts of the deranged ritual commander rocked my senses and left no room for reprieve. This particular ritual spoke of a ''Cannibal Abattoir'' where scenes of butchering the mortals and hanging their skins to the hooks was emphasized. It weaved a catastrophic scenario of mortal ruination and left behind gory scenes in my mind. Then I got hooked to the third ritual which emanated abruptly in a very bleak and chaotic manner. I had already envisioned spirits crawling across my room which weaved a labyrinth of dismay. But I just couldn't give up and threw myself into the maze of horrendous symphonies. 


This ritual called as ''Centurian'' spoke about an evil pandemonium where a progeny of hell was supposed to crush the enemies with brute force. After descending into a hideous thump, I was immediately taken aback by the 4th ritual which started in a flurry of apocalyptic cacophonies. Diabolical summonings of rage continued to pummel my brain until the chaos ceased into a convulsive hymn of languish. The persecutor gave a loud groan of his conjuration and howled nefariously. As usual, the ceremonial hymn ceased into tranquility but it rised again as a crescendo when the fifth ritual began. 
My auditory senses simply trodded with the sinister passage which was created by this abomination. It told me to rise up for a war, where I must wash away the filth of humanity as the lord of hell would arrive and devour it all. A stream of tumultous ardour ran through my veins as I was repeatedly crushed by the groovy dissonance of ''Ritual Executions''. Now, I felt a victorious gleam in my eyes and my head started moving to and fro with the morose crepitation. 


The 6th ritual ''Blood Angel'' came, saw and conquered with its delightful yet vile raucity. It picturized an undead queen of vampyric descent who had an eternal lust for blood. Ravishing hymns of her praise were repeatedly sang and carried ahead with a bedlam of atonal rhythms. 
Coming towards the final ritual, my brain was in an evil trance and I could see sweat flowing down my body. I immediately gulped down a few shots of water and went to hear what the decisive evocation had to offer. ''Death Metal Suicide'' was what it was called and it brought me out of the state of bludgeoning trance which had captivated me for more than 40 minutes. It was a soothing balm which was characterized by a subtle tonality and gloomy harmonies. But I was still dumb struck even after the ritual compilation got over because it left such a lasting impact on my brain, which was very tough to get over with. 


After I gained my senses back, I tried to sum up the overall attributes of this bestial sanctification. I arrived at the point that The Dead had given birth to rituals so bizarre and foul, that it would be harder for anyone to stay away from its demented quality. I

t was a death metal ceremony t

o my ears and mind,  which combined the nauseous qualities of doom and the trance enducing fervor of stoner/sludge which had weaved ghastly components of calamitous disdain. Diabolical Conquest Records have really discovered a bestial horde which can only promise to march ahead in its colossal style and mow down the abysmal preachers of divinity forever!

Final Rating: 9/10

Thy Only Forgotten - Mythos Daemonium (2009)

Full Length, Lux Inframundis Productions

2009

Whenever I gaze at the cosmic horizon, I feel an urge to submerge myself in its fathomless depths and get caressed by its colossal chasms. But this cosmic consciousness is not always easy to be achieved; it needs a special catalyst, a tool which can take you over to an unearthly trance of gloom. 

To my ease, there are some charismatic entities whose epochal symphonies lead me to an astral path of illumination and I got a sheer taste of it recently by a glorious Mexican entity called as - Thy Only Forgotten.

Talking about this horde, they are not a recent congregation in the underground extreme metal scenario and actually formed way back in 1993. But they couldn't proceed further after releasing a demo in 1996. There was a nefarious silence howling in the voids since almost 13 years and that would have certainly pinched them. Enter 2008 and the band is resurrected, maybe by an abrupt vision of re-creating an epic demenaor which most of the bands of today's age lack. 

Last year, they unleashed their first full-length entitled as ''Mythos Daemonium'' on Lux Inframundis Production. The band's status and important information is still pretty discreet since they insist on maintaining obscurity and haven't really published lyrics nor have a Myspace. But as far as I know, their current battalion comprises of the fantastic Antonio Leon (The Chasm fame) and his inputs are distincly audible in their recent offering. 

Mythos Daemonium is all about atmosphere, a very beautiful and peculiar instrument which co-relates to an artist and his creation. He uses his tools to paint the impressions which he perceives in his mind and splashes them out in grand fashion. Some are able to perceive it but some aren't. The same thing applies for extreme  music as its not everyone's cup of tea to perceive disharmonies as dense and atmospheric as Thy Only Forgotten or The Chasm. But then the underground focuses on reaching out to a 'class' rather than a 'mass'. The musicians are nothing less than an artist trying to pour their earnest feelings out via their instruments. 

The vocal passages, guitar tone and the overall charm possessed by this album is pretty much reminicscent of The Chasm - especially their latest offering Farseeing the Paranormal Abysm. But that is pretty obvious because they have the mastermind - Antonio behind them both. The basic thing which struck me on hearing the album for the first time was the slower, melancholic passages. It felt as I am drowning in a stream of psychedelia and getting deeper in it after every listen. This is the sheer power which atmospheric music can portray! The way it hypnotizes you is splendorous. 

Subtle tremelo melodies work like a potion to keep oneself enraptured and swaying with the terrific passages of gloom which makes you feel like eternity. 

If I have to describe the overall grandeur by a mere exclamatory obligation, then I dont think that I would have anything else coming out of my vocal chords apart from - wow!

After dripping myself totally into this release, I would have also loved to get an insight into the lyrical theme but sadly, I couldn't find any. Going from the name and the cover art, I can at least perceive that it has some relation with Aztec mythology, displaying visions of conquest and triumph. If anyone has them, please let me know.

But now, I wouldn't just conclude my article in a tad clichéd manner but would rather share a few honest words. In this short-lived life marred with despondency and traumas, there are only certain things which are capable of giving a feeling of glory and content. Extreme metal is one of those prized entities for sure, and bands like these are sheer exemplaries of what I am talking about. If you share a similar vision and want to have another 40 minutes of veneration, then Mythos Daemonium would be one of those cherishable moments for you.

October Falls - A Collapse of Faith

Full-length, Debemur Morti
2010


Finally…One of the most awaited releases of this calendar year is out. It has been around 2 years since their mastermind; M. Lehto released ‘The Womb of Primordial Nature’ and left everybody speechless. Expectations for the next release were high as October Falls have released some brilliant material throughout the years. This is one of the few bands that do not have a single weak release in their entire catalogue. So, ‘The Collapse of Faith’ should surpass all expectations too, right? DAMN RIGHT. What we have here is a beautiful, majestic release that will take you on a moving, captivating journey which is both, soothing and depressing at times.

In ‘The Collapse of Faith’, October Falls have picked up where ‘the Womb of Primordial Nature’ left off. It basically consists of one long 42 minute track divided into three parts. And each part flows seamlessly into the next. The main feature of the composition of the songs is their simplicity. There are just a few main riffs and the rest are all subtle variations added to them. There are hardly any catchy riffs or any epic lead riffs that define a particular track. But that is not a bad thing. The whole songs flow gracefully and seamlessly as one and keep the listener captivated to it without losing the slightest bit of attention throughout the 40+ minutes that they run for. Another feature of the album is the stunning interplay between the electric and acoustic guitars. The whole album carefully blends the electric and acoustic sets against a background of melancholy and gloom. Every song builds upon itself until it reaches a point where it all comes crashing down in a climax, only to begin anew with a single soft acoustic guitar and start the cycle again. Lehto’s raspy vocals are perfect for this music. There are hardly any variations in them but are perfect and add to the atmosphere of the songs. Certain parts where the tremolo picked riffs merge with the beautiful acoustic strumming in the background with the Lehto’s rasps ranting against humanity and society create a morose atmosphere that has to be felt to be experienced. The drumming in this release is excellent. It adds yet another dimension to this album and also adds to the overall sound with his chaotic fills during the transitions from one riff to another.

There is a lot of melody to be found here. Right from the acoustic start to the riffs and the majestic piano bit towards the end of part II, melody is found in abundance. But it is never overdone or cheesy. The production is perfect. They have achieved the perfect blend between the rough production and clarity. It couldn’t have been better.

This is a stunning release. Right from the acoustic part which starts the album, it is an experience. Not meant for just a casual listen. The album is a culmination of everything that October Falls have done so far and could be branded as their best release yet. This album is depressing, but not in an evil or a suicidal way. Its beauty radiates emotion, sadness and melancholy. This is not a release that gets old quickly. In fact, its been getting better with every listen.

Definitely recommended for people with an open mind and fans of Agalloch, Empyrium, Katatonia, Drudkh, old Opeth or anyone who is into black/folk and neofolk. This is October Fall’s most complete work so far.

9/10

Interview with Lille Gruber of Defeated Sanity

Infernal Dominion unleashes an interview with the mighty blast monster - Lille Gruber from the sickest band from Germany and perhaps the reigning brutal death metal stalwarts of our century - Defeated Sanity. Scroll down to read what this smiling assassin has to say about his band and death metal in particular! 
Conducted by - Ankit Sinha

ID:  Hello Lille, first of all, I would like to congratulate you for the latest album 'Chapters of Repugance'' which has been hideously successful in breaking a ligament or two off my auditory system with its unfathomably sick onslaughts on my poor ears since a few months now. Your next release would probably disable my hearing abilities totally, I fear. I guess that you have must been getting similar complaints from a lot of people worldwide in the past few months. 

Lille: Haha thank you sounds like a nice compliment. Glad you like it. We are indeed already thinking about the next release, so let's see what we can do to mutilate people out there haha!

ID: 1994 was the golden year when Defeated Sanity was born out of the cradle of Germany's underground abysms, but it took 6 years for you to release your first promo. What were the reasons behind this delay? Also, how hard was it to find like-minded and able musicians from your country to collaborate on one of the most extremest bands ever formed? 

Lille: I think, actually, to name the year 1994 as the beggining was a mistake that we made in our bio. It was more the point when our original guitarist and me started jamming. The real beginning was 1998/99 when Münzner/Köhler/Keller joined us to form an actual band. Still took a long time til the release of our debut. The reasons for that were to find the right style, trying to make our discography flawless from the start!

ID:  Its pretty apparent that you are also inclined a lot towards Jazz as Defeated Sanity's insturmental chaos revels in a lot of handsome Jazz oriented sections. Though Jazz has been fused suavely with DM by a lot of bands previously, your ideas were certainly tad different and that is purely reflected by the intricate riff/drum structures been employed by you. What is the basic formula which keep in mind for developing the song structures? 

Lille: Interesting subject. Just yesterday I saw a band of Academic Jazzers trying to make a Jazz/Metal Mix and it was just horrible!! The songwriting seemed so untalented and the band seemed arrogant towards Metal, not taking it seriously enough. There exactly is the point. You gotta take your shit serious. For us everything we compose has to be Death Metal, even if we use crazy "jazzy" shit it has to fit the atmosphere and it can't sound funny, relaxed or smooth, whatever. The dangerous thing for many musicians interested in jazz, etc.. also is to get sucked into it further and to start thinking that is their music now when it really isn't. Well that didn't happen to us and never will. 

ID: After creating tremors in Germany and beyond with your splits and promos, the ultimate catastrophe arrived when Prelude to the Tragedy was unleashed in 2004. It definitely garnered a great attention in the DM scenario worldwide and tossed your band on the the roster of 'the next big thing' to keep an eye on by hordes of BDM afficianados. Though that was just a trailer of the apocalypse which was about to fall upon the mankind with the future releases, it was highly responsible for diseasing our minds with Defeated Sanity's trademark insanity. How was it like working on that album and what were some of the most memorable incidences which you remember during the song writing/recording process for the same?

Lille: Funny, that you look at it that way ("trailer of the apocalypse") because that is why we chose the album title. This release was really meant to be the Prelude to the tragedy. When we composed, recorded and released it we knew this was the time in our career when we finally got strong enough to let people know we are there. Especially because we already had about 2-3 songs written for the next album and we knew it was gonna get just better and better.

About incidences, I remember we all had a fucking rough time recording it. Kelly, our singer back then had to interrupt the recordings because of a severe throat disease which also resulted in this permanent beeping in your ear that you get, when your stressed too much, can't remember that term though. I played this album with a carpal tunnel problem that kept me from playing for 3 months before the recordings, and Wolfgang also had some problems with his tendons.....not a very good time we had while recording, but good came of it.

ID:  Enter 2007 and the DM crowd gets an even more heavier sledge hammer-ish blow on their face with the release of ''Psalms of the Moribund'' - an album which could be tagged as nothing less than '' earth shattering'' in the literal manner. Even the people who had been keeping an eye on your proceedings would not have been able to imagine such cranium crushing heaviness spewed out by Psalms. Jens' hypnotical guttural inhales added just another dimension to the overall music which had grown way more tighter and complex than Prelude. But the biggest highlight would certainly be your breathtaking drumming prowess, I mean it was an absolute frenzy of hyper blasting torment! I would really love if you could shed light on the overall song writing on Psalms. Also, how hard it was to develop those dense vocal patterns for the highly intricate music? 

Lille: Thanks before all for the huge compliment!

Well the songwriting on Psalms.....its pretty sad to be honest. Most ot the songs I developed alone by recording the guitars onto a 8 track recorder, then drumming along to the guitars to come up with drum patterns. Then when these demos were done, I would write them down on tab and teach them to both guitarists (who were both living more than 5 hours away which made rehearsals hard for DS). To teach these songs to Jacob was really one of the last steps to complete the album as he was only a session member back then.

You see, for this album the songwriting was kinda lonely job and not very co-operative for most of the tracks.

Only I and Jens, who lived near, got together from time to time to work on vocal lines. I had about 90% of patterns and lyrics written and Jens added a few lines and a few ideas to it. By the way, the reason for this vocal style was that we thought that the vocals needed to bring catchieness and calmness into the music. A singer accentuating all of the tech shit would have been overkill I think.

ID: One frequent issue which has bothered Defeated Sanity is the various line-up changes. Both Wolfgang and Jens left the band after Psalms which would have made your job a bit more harsh to find better or equivalent replacements. In fact all the three full lengths have different vocalists which actually makes them sound individual and a tad different than one another. Christian's stint with the band was also pretty shortlived and now we know him better with bands like Obscura, Spawn of Possession and Necrophagist. What were the reasons due to which such highly talented musicians had to leave the band? 

Lille: Individual reasons: 

Jens was a chemistry issue with the whole band,

Wolfgang had problems with his arms (of course partly due to his age) and also with learning tons of new material

Münzner and DS parted ways cus we didn't have the same ideas about songwriting, sound etc...had obviously nothing to do with his playing skills

ID: After the departure of Jens, Konni of Despondency/Resection fame took over the vocal duties for your live acts but only for a brief amount of time. Why didn't you consider taking him as a full time vocalist? Which other vocalists were auditoned for this job?

Lille: We just didn't like the fact of someone singing in another bands already, especially when they are of such importance as Despondency (RIP). That was why we tried to dig out AJ, because no one had heard of him in a long time and we knew that people have been missing his voice as much as we have! About other vocalists, we had great guys try out from all sorts of places via internet but we tried to find a person from Germany. None of those who have tried from here seemed up to par though.

ID:  Now finally pouncing upon your latest magnum opus - '' Chapters of Repugnance'', I experience a child like exuberance while describing the barbaric attributes of its slanderous atonal torments. It deviously proceeded from where Psalms had ended in all its rapturous grandeur and left an even more suave impression on my mind than what the former did. The recruitment of A.J. Magana (Disgorge/Deprecated) worked wonders for you as his guttural demolition fitted the highly abrasive nature of Chapter's music with absolute perfection. But wasn't it tought to work on the rehearsals for such highly complex songs because of the vast difference in A.J.'s location? How did you create the whole blue print for the rehearsal/recording with him? 

Lille: More than 80% of the lyrics and vocal patterns were already written when he came here. We recorded demo's with me singing the vocal patterns/lyrics over the music and sent them to him via e-mail to give him a rough idea of the songs. When AJ came here 5 days before the studio sessions we went over the songs and put them to perfection. He also changed some parts of the lyrics in order to make the patterns flow even better.

ID: I would like to know that how did you finally decide to take A.J. as a full time vocalist for your band. Didn't the country difference act as a huge hindrance for not only the recording but also for the live shows? You even did some shows without his vocal services because of some issues which had popped in for him.

Lille: Right now is a very open phase for DS still. We wanna try to keep AJ in the band, although it obviously is a big task to co-ordinate everything. We will see how that will progress. Musically, there is none that fits us better. It's just a great match. We also worked on new songs together already with everyone contributing.....it could be another great cooperation. But we need to make big sacrifices,  especially AJ with all the travelling.

ID: Apart from Mr. Magana's mayhemic contributions, Christian and Jacob were the major partners in crime who weaved a malicious miasma with their jaw dropping string attacks. Jacob's bass lines were extremely crucial for making the album sound so monstrously epic and he complemented Christian's spontaneous riff assualt with panache. How do you feel about this tremendous element which those two guys brought in for Defeated Sanity?

Lille: I could not be happier with the core of the band right now. Jacob and Chris are fucking sick and we are a good musical entity. We also write music together opposed to back then when I was just composing shit all alone.

ID: Your albums are full with some of the most gratifying and insanely labyrinthine songs which leave the listeners with dumb with awe. But it is definitely not as easy as how it sounds to us. Which were some of the most challening songs which you came across in your entire career with Defeated Sanity?

Lille: I gotta say that Blissfully Exsanguinated is the song that was most challenging to write for me. Mainly talking about the lyrics here. I wanted to transport a complex story within a very short song which is a veeeeeeeery hard job. But I managed to let it flow perfectly, of course with AJ's help. Also playing wise, it's one of the most challenging and innovative songs of ours.

ID: It is also known that you are also an ace guitarist though we haven't been exposed to your string carnage apart from the sessions you did for Sinners Bleed. What actually happened to the proposed ''Dark Jazz Rock'' project where you were supposed to play guitars with Wolfgang on drums? Have you also considered playing guitars fulltime for some another DM project?

Lille: I will not play in another DM project, because all the Death Metal riffs I write are obviously gonna be used for DS. But that Jazzy project is coming along nicely. Just improvising anyways. We hope to enter a studio soon and record some of these improvisations....if the stuff turns out good we can release it.

ID: You had also collaborated with Turkish brutal death metallers Cenotaph for their latest offering ''Putrescent Infectious Rabidity'' and again, the percussive demeanor took most of the attention on that album. How did you get in touch with those fellows and what was the recording process for the album? Was it a totally internet based collaboration or you had a personal tete-a-tete with the members also?

Lille: Got in touch with them, because Batu offered himself to help out DS, which we only didn't do because we already found Konni to help us. Then he asked me if I would do their album and I said yes. Indeed an internet thing, never met them in my life yet haha.

ID: The lyrics for your music have also been a very special highlight. They have mostly focused on the horrors and degradation of mortal life but Chapters of Repugnance have had some more atrocious and realistic lyrics, especially on ''Engulfed in Excruciation''. What is your primal approach for writing lyrics and how do you think that it is important to even jot lyrics for an ultra brutal death metal band, where one can barely decipher as to what's being sung by the vocalist? And, were Christian and Jacob also involved with the lyric writing on Chapters? 

Lille: Lyrics were mainly written by me with some help from AJ and some other people too. Lyrics have to flow perfectly with the music and have to give a song the perfect dramaturgy. I bet if you try you can read along each word sung on Chapters. He did a very good job at being super guttural but still making the lyrics audible.

ID: How did the deal with Willowtip Records came along?

Lille: A lot of labels made us offers after our deal with Grindethic was ended. Willowtip had the best offer, as far as we could judge.

ID: Before being signed to Willowtip, your earlier full lengths had been released by Grindethic Records, who were more of a deathgrind/goregrind label before they signed a complex death metal band like yours. How did they treat your musical abilities and how much were you satisfied with the amount of promotion done by them? 

Lille: I think they did the best they could do and they will always be our brothers. Each time we have been to the UK they have helped us alot. Always supporting! Great people!

ID:  Now, talking about the music again, one can notice a lot of slamming elements intervowen adeptly with the gravity defying, hyper blasting atrocity of the music. How far have you been influenced with the whole ''Slam Death Metal'' genre and why did you actually consider involving its elements into Defeated Sanity's music?

Lille: Hmmm I guess we always wanted to pick the best out of Death Metal to come as close as possible to the "ultimative death metal style". Slam is essential to us, as is technicality, as is speed, as is somber, abysmal atmosphere. Our motto is, never forget the past but also never forget the present and future either. Get with the times and update your sound with what is good......deathcore breakdowns are not included in that by the way.

ID: What all shows or announcement do you guys have in the pipe-line?

Lille: A lot of unconfirmed shit, which could be amazing if it happens. Also finally getting into our own country a bit more, which is a plus.

ID: Now going down the memory lane, tell me that how did your journey as a metalhead began and which were the albums/songs which exposed you to whole death metal movement during your younger days?

Lille: First thing I heard after 2 years of Metallica, Maiden and Megadeth,etc.., was Morgoth "The Eternal Fall", Atrocity "Hallucinations", Obituary "Cause of Death", Death "Human"....then for even more brutal shit CC "Tomb of the Mutilated" and Monstrosity's first album. Great fucking times! 

ID: Name some of the drummers/guitarists (not strictly metal) which have been a major influence on your style? 

Lille: Pick up the booklet for Prelude to the Tragedy, almost all of them are in there.

ID: What is your opinion about the current German death metal scene and which bands do you think are the better ones from there?

Lille: Good bands from Germany: Sinners Bleed, Despondency (rip), Infested (rip), Ingurgitating Oblivion, Necrophagist obviously....umm tons more, just getting lazy here haha.

ID:  Which current/upcoming bands do you like the best from the existing underground DM scenario? Are there any special tips and ideas which you would like to share with many of the young turks who are trying hard to play technical and hard hitting death metal? 

Lille: The shit that is blowing me away recently is Scatorgy (toured with them and they are really promising), Putridity (check the new songs, fucking relentless shit), Devourments "Unleash the carnivores" is sick as fuck....etc etc.

My tips for young bands I guess: rather focus on hard hitting (= brutal) than go for technical (= learning complicated arpeggios before being able to write a solid song or palm mute a powerchord the right way). Technicality comes when you have a solid foundation to build on.

ID: Coming towards the end of this grueling interview, I would like to thank you loads for sparing your crucial time to answer my questions. I feel absolutely honored to have interviewed one of the best death metal musicians to have ever embraced planet earth! Wish you all the luck for the upcoming ventures of Defeated Sanity.

The final space is all yours. Feel free to comment whatever you felt about the questionnaire and your brutal thoughts for our readers.

Lille: Hey thank you for the interview, Ankit! Hails to all our fans worldwide. Watch out for more brutal releases and come to the fucking shows!

Keep it sick

Lille/DS

Check out Defeated Sanity at - http://www.myspace.com/defeatedsanity

Uncleansed - Domination of the Faithful

Full Length, Grindethic Records
2010



2010 marks as the year when the long-awaited debut of Texan horde Uncleansed finally sees the light of day and it indeed sounds like a pretty fruitful wait. 
The band's inception dates back to 2006 when 5 kindered souls got together to play some of the vilest and unwholesome death metal to have ever emerged from Texas and immediately began creating ideas to accomplish this goal. A line-up consisting of some upstanding names in underground death metal like the prolific Shawn Whitaker (Insidious Decrepancy, Viral Load, Grotesque Formation), Jim Case (Imprecation, Infernal Dominion) and Darrel White (Viral Load) would certainly raise the expectation level to dizzying heights and an immediate desire to get slapped by some abrasive tunes. But sadly their visions for an unnholy domination couldn't be fulfilled instantly since this debut venture took 3 long years to be released. Better late then never though, I at least got to hear it and enjoyed the listening experience throughout. 
What we have on ''Domination of the Faithful'' is an enriching blend of old New York Death Metal styled death metal with modern brutality. Jim Case' riffing clearly reminds me of his days with Infernal Dominion where he had created a pretty Incantation-esque, slow paced and diabolical style of death metal and Whitaker's trademark guttural style of vocals hints of Insidious Decrepancy though there aren't much of the groovy/slammish elements on Domination. It simply is a straight forward death metal bludgeoning which has the stern potentiality to captivate an afficianado of the afore-mentioned styles/bands from the beginning till the very end. Loads of high end tremolo picked/down picked riffs, subtle chord progressions and time signatures savored my hunger for some delicious death metal. Darrel's drumming has been quite spot-on with proficient double kicks which go synonymous with the tempo changes. Handsome snare/cymbal patterns and diligently paced blasts add up to the percussive demenaour of Mr. White. The snare sound almost reminds me of the latest Insidious Decrepancy though the latter contained of programmed drum patterns. 

Some of the best moments on the album are on tracks like ''The Summoning'' which begins in a grand fashion, with a great opening rhythm and carries on the hammering suavely until the chaos ceases to a beautifully doom-laced riff, clearly reminding me of Incantation with Shawn's incredible guttural rasps enhancing its notoriety. ''Sacrament of the Ancients'' is another worth mention which begins with an echoing bass endured riff  and continues on to a beautifully carved melodic rhythm, paving way more for yet another rapturous tremolo riff and many more such time signatures to endure the listener further. 
The title track's intro starts off very much like Once Revered (Insidious Decrepancy - Extirpating Omniscient Certitude) and continues the blaze with proficient morbidity. Supported by a few bass sections, the riffs go on to converge to a short Krisiun-esque lead to finish off the song effectively. ''Molecular Immolation'' starts with a catchy melodic riff which continues for till half a minute and descends into other time signatures sporadically. This track also reeks in a doom-laden section towards the middle and leaves me completely rejoiced. ''Conquest of the Heaven'' begins its march with a stellar blast and more tremolos and then ceases to a mid pace with a drowsy bass riff which is quite short lived and the initial carnage ascends once again. A catchy chorus strikes an instant chord with my ears and then the mid-paced frenzy arrives again to climax the rituals of this fantastic musical spectacle.
As you must have already gathered from the description above, the musicians in Uncleansed have reveled in excellent team work which shows up for the brilliant progressions and structures of the songs. Whilst many of the bands fail to mix the ingredients together in vain of brutality and instrumental wankery, these Texan death metal cowboys show why their ranch is considered as one the most destructive in the whole underground death metal scene. This release doesn't actually add a new dimension to death metal nor does it speak of innovation but it actually highlights some striking points of making enjoyable brutal death metal. Get this and see for yourself. 


Official Myspace -
http://www.myspace.com/uncleansedtxdm

Interview with legendary Spanish grindgore band Haemorrhage!

Infernal Dominion unleashes a gruelling Interview with Ana and Luisma, founding members of the gore drenched clinical disorder named as Haemorrhage. Enjoy! 
Conducted by-
Ankit Sinha





ID:Saludos gore amigos! How are you maniacs doing? I hope that your daily ration of rotten bile and spicy innards has been kept intact. Ana must not stop taking those to maintain her gore-geous looks isn't it?


Ana: Hi! We are ok, thanks...ready to all answer your questions. Yes, of course, all in Haemorrhage have a gory diet

ID: So, going back to the days when Haemorrhage was still evolving as a bastard child in your embryos and you were considering the best dispensaries to conceive, what was actually going through your minds? Was the idea behind it was just too random and horny and you thought that ''hey just hit the toilet and fuck'' or it was a menacingly planned disaster which happened just like how you guys wanted by doing a nice sleazy intercourse with your scalpels and putrid minds?

Luisma:  We never had a clear plan about Haemorrhage but some former ideas. We settled some basis to build the band from there, but many things in life don't turn out always as you planned. In our case we wanted to play Grind music with gore lyrics and a brutal image and more or less we are still into this ideas, so it mean things worked out well. The rest of the elements in this band are things that we took as the band was rolling on...

ID: I would love to know about the reaction of your fellow Spanish amigos when Haemorrhage started walking up from its foul cradle and began to shit upon the poseurs with its first bunch of pathological symphonies nicely minced and puked on the platter in form of ''Grotesque Embryopathology''. I am sure that the foul reek coming up from the first excremental ecstacy must have driven all of them nuts!

Luisma: The reaction to our first demo was really limited as the distribution of that demo was strictly limited to a few copies. In those times was usual that bands sells their demos through mail orders but the sound quality of our demo was really lousy so we decided just tape it to other amigos, spread it thru tape-trading and send it to some fanzines that asked for stuff of other bands we were playing for at that times. Anyway the few people that got our demo I think not more that 100 people was really shocked cause the style was really unusual in Spain, the filhty sound helped out to add more sickness to the demo

ID: Were you folk’s part of any previous surgical disasters before the miscarriage known as Haemorrhage happened?

Luisma: Yeah, we all were playing for other local bands at that time.Our former drummer Jose was playing with some friends in Deformed, I played in Avulsed and other shitty noise projects, our singer Lugubrious was playing in Lugubrious, our bass player and actual drummer played together in Greenfly and other bands, and Ana played in a Thrash bands named Mortal Housen. 

ID: Initially when the name Devourment was pronounced for your devious baby, then why did you re-christen it as Haemorrhage? Who came with the names?

Luisma: Our former drummer had the idea of the name and concept after Devorment. It was all about cannibalism as protest against meat consume, and his idea was recording a demo or album with all titles like a restaurant menu replacing animals by humans...you know boiled members, embryos instead eggs, brain burgers, etc...ha, ha...it was original but I was pretty more traditional and my idea was a band with pathological and medical influenced lyrics cause it was the most extreme thing in that time. It was hard to make him change his mind but I finally did it and we changed the lyrics style and subsequently the band name to Haemorrhage. I don't know what I told him but surely they were good reasons as he also got 100% into pathology like me.

ID: During 1994, when Haemorrhage was just around 4 years old and grew more faster than any other child in the scenario all due to great attention and care from its parents who ransacked each mortuary in town to spread the rabid infection around. It got its vital breakthrough when Morbid Records from Germany got too unnerved by the reeking odour oozing out of the 94-promo tape and decided to expose other dedicated morticians to its rancid taste. They fulfilled this objective by releasing the Obnoxious/Thy Horned God split with Christ Denied. That was apparently the first time that a Spanish horde irked a deal with an international label and it gave your obnoxious child quite some unwholesome exposure among the maniacal surgical fanatics. How did this breakthrough change the proceedings for you? Did you guys get a good chance to infest the zombies at Germany and other Euro countries that time also?

Luisma: Well to be honest everything that happened to Haemorrhage before was a child's play compared when those first months of 1994. We got a full line-up for first time and some members left their old bands and projects playing only for Haemorrhage. That make us practice more days and getting a bunch of good songs. We entered a studio and recorded a quite good demo and this demo brought us the contract with Morbid. All these thing happened in 5 months. And changed our thoughts about the band forever. The contract with Morbid atractted the atention of the European scene on us and we had the chance to play out of the Spanish bounds for first time

ID:  After the gruesome emanations off ''Emetic Cult'' and ''Grume'' plagued the living dead at Spain and other countries, Haemorrhage became a lovable child of the morgues and pathologies around in Spain and it gave rise to a menacing groove laden sound which was Haemorrhage's own and inspired many morticians who started dissecting the graves later on. How did your fellow Spaniards take this achievement as? Were they jealous of your then 7/8 year old child getting a good amount of (de)fame?

Luisma: Yes, after "Grume" album we took another big step in the band's career and we our name got bigger, but curiously we were the same shitty band in Spain. I mean some people didn't like we were the first spanish band to release and album in a foreign label and they got really pissed-off when they saw us growing up album that album. I'm not talking about fans I mean people of other bands, labels, etc...or to be explicit a person that had a band, magazine, label, and big power in the scene was so jealous and he tried to fuck us as much as he can, but he couldn't stop the rot'n'roll!

ID: Haemorrhage has progressed in each album with a new sickening flavour. Where Emetic Cult, Grume and Anatomical Inferno were oozing with raw and nauseous production, Morgue Sweet Home had a tad improved and chiseled production with plenty of groovy old school Death Metal riffs. How did you decide about the musical directions to be followed in each album? Did you always try to create something way out of Haemorrhage’s league or followed one basic formula all the time?

Ana:  Our only formula is making songs not putting riffs together. We are influenced by many styles: Grind, Punk, Death Metal, etc...sometimes we can show our Death Metal side in a song and sometimes our Punk side.

Luisma: We can't certainly plan our musical direction, cause we play what we feel. We know we are Haemorrhage and we know our style, but there's many aspects in our style. We always try to include more elements and influences and still sound like Haemorrhage. Thats a challenge in every album.

ID: Now lets again go back to the past *rewind, rewind, rewind* Ah! There we stop at when Haemorrhage was still brooding in your embryos, what were the gruesome ideas, which you lunatics were visualizing that such an offspring was born? Which horror/gore features or ominous hordes influenced you?

Luisma: Everything sick we watched influenced us, of course horror movies like all the classics: Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Day of the Dead, Zombie, etc...also all Gore: Braindead, Premutos...Troma movies, and shit like that. My biggest influence was a medical TV show called "In buenas manos" (in good hands) that featured surgical operations and al lot of medical stuff with a really crude and explicit videos...It was really amazing. Actually the intros of some tracks on Grume are taken from that TV show.

Ana: When we started we watched lots of gore /horror movies. Actually the Emetic Cult intro is from the movie Nekromatik, but our band style wasn't inspired in the movies.    

ID: Ok Luisma, now I want you be to very honest again and tell me didn't you actually recruit Ana to Haemorrhage's bandwagon because a gore-geous maiden like her would be more than enough to attract huge crowds? Then I wonder what would be the situation of the attendees of your live surgical operations when they'd be in a dilemma as to concentrate on the musick or Ana. What do both of you feel about it after having done tons of such operations over these 20 years?

Luisma: No, inluding Ana in the band was something "accidental". We had some shows with Anal Cunt in Spain and our bassist moved to other town to get a new job. So we had no bass player. Ana was my grilfriend (and now my wife) and sometimes she came to see our rehearsals and then we jammed together, so I knew she was an amazing guitar player. So I just asked her if she wa also interested in playing bass on a couple of shows. After those shows they were the others who want her in the band, but our bassist Ramon left their job and returned to our town so Ana stayed in the band as guitarist and Ramon took back on bass.

I think Ana has probed she's not only a exotic female element in the band. Shes a talented guitar player, and she's underrated cause in this style she can't show all that she can do.

Ana: When I joined the band it was a very small band, they just signed to Morbid but I never imagined everything has happened in those years. When I look back it seems incredible.

ID: Ana its pretty obvious that you are amongst one of the first females to play Extreme abominations in the underground scenario and are still going rock solid by supporting your child dutifully like an ideal parent. How did you get the influence to be a part of this rabid, purulent cult and when did you pick up your surgical instrument for the first time?

Ana: I used to listen to Metal  cause my older brothers always play Metal at home. I always liked guitar so when I was 14 I convinced my father to buy a guitar for me. I was in a guitar school for some years and I wanted to form my own band but I can't so I joined to other bands but as singer. Then I started to listen to Death Metal and Grind and I met Haemorrhage members cause we usually went to the same clubs and gigs. They want me in the band and here I am. 

ID: One of the biggest highlights of Haemorrhage's gore antics (apart from Ana of course) is Lugubrious - the malignant conveyor of Haemorrhage's insidious symphonies. I really like the cool personality, which he has. He actually makes me feel as if he is a rotting zombie who couldn't get enough of guts and brain tissues for which he carries them along with him during your live operations to be eaten at frequent intervals. How did he come up with such a look and does he actually use real blood to drain himself for his stage performances? Hey, wait! One important question! - does he ever take bath to wipe out the filth out of his body or that has become an integral accessory of his malign persona?

Luisma: I guess he always had that idea in his mind and he did it from the first show to the last. I remember he appeared covered by blood since the first pics. In the first shows he also wore a white doctor coat but his body and face were covered by blood.

He uses artificial blood, of course. The real blood stinks a lot after some hours out of the body!

He never had a bath he has the same blood over his body from the first gig!! ha, ha...Seriously the blood colour can't be removed easily, so it's still on his face for somedays after tours or gigs. So if someone that doesn't know he's a Grind singer ask about the colour of his face or hands he answers  "I've been painting my dog house in red"     

ID: The rest of you dress up as surgeons to enhance the vile embodiment of Haemorrhage and that really goes well with its image. Are you guys having this look from the very beginning or incorporated it later? How did the people react when they saw such a beautiful appearance for the first time?

Luisma: We play in medical apparels from our second gig, except in the first GOE tour when we decided don't wear our clothes by some reasons. We were openers so we want people focus on our music and not in our image, but it was a big mistake, cause we tought it was our first tour and nobody in Europe would know us, but people saw our pics and wanted us to play like we were on the pics. So when we played the tour for "Grume" we decided to dress up in scrubs again. People in the begging was shocked it wasn't usual to see bands playing like us.    

Ana: Nowadays we usually play with bands dressed like us. Its weird but it cool cause it seems we created a trend.

ID: I am really an appreciator of Luisma's comic book style gore artworks, which give an exquisitely eschatological look to Haemorrhage's grindgore conjurations. How many bands have you worked with as a graphic artist? Do you also work as a professional graphic artist for a living or the mortician's job gives you enough bile juice and guts to relish?

Luisma: I worked mainly for Haemorrhage but I did some stuff for others bands and zines, the most known are Impetigo, Cliteater, Pulmonary Fibrosis, Flesh Salad 'zine, etc...No I'm not a professional artist, or at least this is not my only job, but obviously my artwork has a price. If someone wants my artwork just contact me I can do cover artworks, layouts, animations, 3d-logos, banners etc...

ID: Ana have you ever imagined yourself as a ''normal'' ''ideal'' woman whom your equally sane boyfriend could introduce to his mum? How would you think a regular mommy would react if she sees her daughter in law, in a surgical suit, defiling the innards of her son's corpse and then making love with it? By the way, how did Luisma's mother reacted when you visited her for a lunch for the first time and asked for boiled intestines and brain juice instead of Croquetas and Spanish omlettes?

Ana: Luisma's house is like Texas Chainsaw Massacre house so they always eat things like that, and a cup of pus for dessert. Seriously, Luisma's mom wasn't surprised when see meet me after living many years with a freakish son like hers. And more after knowing the most of the friends he has in the past.By the way, what do you mean with a "normal" "ideal" woman?? Are you meaning am I a freak or something? If you are meaning this you are completely wrong. (Ana seems completely pissed by my comment here haha!)

Luisma: Man, if you taste my mom croquetas you won't eat intestines or festered bowels anymore!!!

ID: Why did you guys decided to part ways with your long time supporters Morbid Records who possibly did each and every full length of Haemorrhage and sign with Relapse Records? Did they lure you by offering mortuaries that are more lavish and more victims to be dissected?

Luisma: No, it was basically cause Morbid records was sold to other label called WAR (War-Anthem-records) we don't want to follow on with them and we looked for other label and Relapse was a good option. I think it fits quite good for a band like Haemorrhage.

ID: Why is the split with Mexigorge taking forever to release?

Luisma: That's a question for EMF records. We send over all our stuff and they seems to be in a hurry...e-mails everyday and so on...Now I don't have responses from Edgar from EMF and Disgorge guitarist. I don't know whats going on. I think we should look for another label, but thats hard cause we don't have the masters

ID: What does Haemorrhage have in store for the psychotic surgeons next?

Ana: We are preparing a bunch of new songs. We hope record in a few weeks, probably after OEF 2010

Luisma: Yes, we have the stuff for new album "Hospital Carnage" ready to be recorded!!

ID: How did you guys come up with your recent offspring, which is - The Emetic Club? Was it conceived to become an ideal sibling to Haemorrhage? Tell me more about this club and the various gigs you have conducted there.

Ana: We must clear that is not our club and it wasn't our idea. There were some guys that make a extreme music club and they were Haemorrhage fans. So they asked us for permission for using our name for the club and also some artworks for decorate their club, and flyers, etc...We were totally shocked with the single idea of having a club with our band's name. So we supported them. I recommend you go over there if you come to Spain.

Luisma: Yes, the club is actually 500 km from our hometown and we've never been there, but we hope we can play a "baptism" show there. A good point is we don't have to take out stage banner cause there is a big Haemorrhage logo behind the stage. Eveything that save work is welcome, you know, ha, ha...

ID: Now I am feeling quite depressed as I have come towards the end of this fantastic questionnaire and the pain of separating from your nekromantik charm makes me shed a tear or two. I would like you to puke out your goresoaked comments about the interview and your words of wisdom for the fellow ''Zombified Preachers of Gore''. The final space is all yours.

Ana: Thanks to you for supporting our band and Hi to all Indian fans.

Luisma: Thanks for the intie greetings from the morgue!!!

Official Myspace - http://www.myspace.com/haemorrhage

Morgue - http://www.haemorrhage.es/

Haemorrhage is -

Luisma - Lead Guitar, backing vox

Ramon - Bass

Lugubrious - Maligna vox

Ana - Rhythm Guitar

Rojas - Drums

Cemetery Urn - The Conquered are Burned

Full Length, Self Released

May 10th, 2010

Australia

Cemetery Urn, a quite recent addition to the cavernous dungeon of Aussie infernal glory are back with a tormenting compilation of bestial hymns for the appraisers of ancient Death Metal, (anti)christened as ''The Conquered are Burned''. Though this evil congregation was formed in 2007, their bandwagon isn't new to the Aussie extreme metal movement comprising with members from Corpse Molestation, Kutabre, Bestial Warlust, Abominator etc. These hordes have already created ghoulish impressions on the Australian as well as worldwide extreme metal front with their merciless hammering on the essence of weakened mortals and their appalling faiths. So by reading these above lines, people who are new to Cemetery Urn's brand of abominable deathvastions can get a bleak idea as to how they should build up their expectations from them.

Recorded at Three Phase Studio, Melbourne, between April - November 2009, the album comprises of 8 horrific symphonies reeking highly with the destructive sound reminiscent of a mixture of the old American and Swedish Death Metal of the early 90's. Death's Turbulent Fire starts off the proceedings of this brutal bludegoning and does it with elan. The opening riffs highly reminds you of Swedish undeground legends Necrony and the guitar tone is a tad similar to that exhibited on Pathological Performances. Now as your mouth starts watering already, you are exposed to the guttural rasps of Damon who enunciates the inception of raging war on the heavenly blaze and militaristic hammering on the drums enrapture you further.
Even before you could get some reprieve from the carnage forged on you by the first track, The Plague of Annihilation emerges out and destroys your cranial juices even more. With a frenzy of downtuned sludgy riffs, a catchy yet crushing chorus and mayhemic drums, you get the vibe of good old Incantation's first and sophomore albums specially towards the ending of the track where a subtle doomy passage rings a bell of some similar parts in Mortal Throne of Nazarene. More Incantation worship follows in the songs ahead - specially Wrath from The Grave, whose intro passages and riffs reminds of Decimate Christendom, a la Dying Divinity. The track begins with a catchy riff and then abruptly, you get a thud on your face by a frenzy of instrumental ecstasy which consists of quite a few tempo changes, from groovy double bass sections to grinding dissonance.
Possessed Terror and ...Of Spectral Dominance continue in a similar fashion and enamor one's auditory senses with more muddy riffs and hooking solos.

A Cemeterial Reaping kick-starts with a captivating melodic lead and converges onto a belligerent solo after which paves way for blastorocious maraudings, taking the track onto a newer level of lunacy. However, the track mostly comprises of fast paced sections, there are subtle mid paced grooves and hooking riffs which make it sound thoroughly enjoyable.After 33 minutes of indimidating sonic torturing on the conquered souls, its time to finally burn their naive embodiment and this gruelling work is perfectly ritualized by the concluding title track The Conquered are Burned. Its furious warlike hymn starts off with a mighty blaze in form of its compelling opening riff which clearly indicates the captured ones that their end is near.

The deterioration begins where Damon yells:
The Conquered are Burned -
smell the boiling blood
The Conquered are Burned -
see their feeble demise
These terminating enunciations continue until Andrew shoots out a final incantation out of his axe and the initial chaos returns back to finish off the proceedings.
Stench of the burning dead emanates from the speakers as Damon rejoices and yells out - They Fucking Burn!!  like an ancient demon lusting for blood.

Overall, Cemetery Urn have certainly made a notch with their second album which is a tad more focussed and well composed as compared to its pre-decessor. The production has also been improved on this one where it still maintains the sewer-flavour of the ultra low guitar despondencies but hasn't gone indistinguishable with the vocals and drums. This was a slight dilemma which had marred Urn of Blood where many parts became quite dissonant, making it little difficult to comprehend the instrumental intrications. Talking about the artwork, a simplistic yet impressive inlay and cover art by Daryl (Funebrarum, Disma etc) provides the perfect idea of the hauntings being unleashed by the album.
This album is going to make a mark on the Aussie underground and would place the band on the ranks of other recent bestial Death Metal hordes like Ignivomous and European acts like Cruciamentum and Dead Congregation. Even though the album is a fanatic worship of the gods of blasphemy - Incantation, it doesn't sound like a cheap and effortless rip-off which some bands come up with. Its indeed a dutiful ritualistic worship which is more often needed from upcoming bands to keep the reverence of the mighty archangels of death and destruction alive.

Buy it and support their diligent death-prayers now!

http://www.hellsheadbangers.com/cemeteryurn/

Official Webhell - http://cemeteryurn.com/
Myspace -  http://www.myspace.com/cemeteryurn

Final Rating - 7.8/10