ninehertz

Mutilation Rites summon a Darkthrone black aura to stripped back death metal. After dwelling in a pit of tar for a few minutes, the bewilderingly enjoyable Pierced Larynx awakens, a wonderful punk-infected riff blasts them free, enlivening proceedings, the band now fiercely confrontational.

The Brooklyn quartet never relent. Chasm is six tracks and 42 minutes of blasting death with raw punk verve. Galloping thrash riffs appear, raging onwards, reminders of extreme metal’s roots in the 80s, while other moments slow in black metal misery.

The more you listen, the more invested you become, the more you notice how what seemed straight forward blood stained death metal is actually a whirlwind on the senses, layers of attack clashing together, favourably bringing to mind Grave Miasma‘s mysterious worlds.

This depth swallows you, the intensity of, for example, Post Mortem Obsession truly engrossing as it strikes out malevolently from its multi angled maelstrom. Yet the ever present punk roll injects a sense of fun, for serious need of a better word. Take the title track, and all the dirt it kicks up in its raging blackened affront - that still brings smiles and head swinging allegiance.

A death metal album of aggression, depth and, contrary to the putrid stench, a freshness through the many angled attack.