ALBUM REVIEW: Scolopendra – Those Of The Catacombs

The debut album of Italian old school Death Metallers SCOLOPENDRA is here. Out via Nuclear War Now Productions and Caligari Records on July 13th.

Doomy riffs and crashing cymbals draw in the macabre mood of the release with maniacal vocals adding a sense of urgency to the atmospherically droning extremity. Building to crawling tremolo riffs and creepy blastbeats, the slower tempos are utilised in a ferocious and otherworldly manner along with some totally inhuman vocals to create some absolutely unique and savage Death Metal like nothing you have heard. Perhaps drawing more inspiration from the likes of Necrovore than the typical old school bands. Blasphemous and ritualistic passages fire away with a horrific and disturbing sound that will certainly divide listeners, pushing away the weak and ushering in those with an open mind.

There is an excellent use of more bleak riffs which melt into the caustic assault beautifully to conjure up a twisted sense of dread with the incantation like vocals and hammering drum work. The slower sections are where the band truly come to life, at least to my ear. While the more high-tempo parts are played excellently, there is something so blisteringly unnerving about the more textured, doomy parts that feel dangerous to listen to. With a more occult atmosphere that arguably feels closer to Black Metal but presented among totally brutal Death Metal concoctions, this is not a simple slab of brutal riffs, blasts and growls but rather an untamed tome of destruction.

Discarding the easy option of catchy hooks and basic grooves, Scolopendra have developed their own sickeningly dark version of how to pursue the sounds of carnage-inducing Extreme Metal and successfully so. In a world with an abundance of great Death Metal harkening back to its origins, it is fantastic to see a band take this in an unpredictable, volatile and disturbing direction that feels more akin to South American bands from back in the day more than their North American and European contemporaries. Obliterating and oozing with a mystical energy, this release will haunt and chill anyone to the bone who sticks with this unusual approach to Death Metal, making it totally worthwhile.

Scolopendra defy all ideas of how Death Metal generally sounds to deliver something monstrous and spectral with their debut album that is a thoroughly odd and yet totally satisfying listen. This is the refreshing type of release that undoubtedly stands out from anything else released lately, for better or worse depending on taste, but nobody can say they aren’t unique. I personally found this to be a killer record that is utterly unhinged in every sense. -8/10