ALBUM REVIEW: Ghastly – Mercurial Passages

Finnish Death Metal conjurers GHASTLY return with their 3rd opus, set for release via 20 Buck Spin on May 28th.

Calming ambient sounds begin the release with a simplicity that is short lived. Cavernous guitars cascade a gorgeously eerie melancholy over pounding drums and crashing cymbals as a rhythmic spew and vocal assault give some edge to the rather resplendent opening. Immediately the atmosphere is mephitic yet in an otherworldly manner due to some dissonant flare and ethereal vocals that give the music a blackened touch. The style of vocals feel more like an incantation which perfectly suits the bellowing instrumental onslaught in all of its nuanced glory. There is a less-than-straightforward approach to this music as it meanders through charnel corridors of ecstasy and despair while always returning to that deathly core of visceral barbarity. The previous effort “Death Velour” was certainly an evocative moment in the Death Metal underground, one that earned a strong reputation for this band, something they clearly haven’t taken for granted. On the opening passages of this record we see a slumbering beast come to life with monstrous vitriol awakening within, what has awoken cannot be tamed.

Contorting instruments continue to work sonic magic with convulsing guitars atop mountainous pulsating drum beats that meet those harrowing, spectral vocals to superb effect. While warped, the warmth of the production and excellent musicianship make this a very pleasant, if unsettling, listen that is easy to become ensnared by as the tangled soundscapes provide such a magnificent atmosphere. The charging blastbeats often give way to some more traditional Death Metal riffs, though nothing derivative or dull is in sight. On the other side, the lead work is often used sparingly but well to add a boosting liveliness for a short spell before returning to murky darkness. The abyssal bellowing certainly brings to mind a few bands such as Grave Miasma, Dead Congregation, Obliteration and Ritual Necromancy as we often see some Black Metal and Doom Metal cast into the Death Metal cauldron. Naturally this gives the music a suitably occult feeling and one that is utterly haunting yet no less savage as a result.

Voices call from beyond as the album does not relent in its maniacally aggressive and ambient assault. The punishing grooves, claustrophobic atmospherics and sparse dissonance is tied with truly inexorable performance of real brilliance. A radiant and transcendent blend of utterly cerebral songwriting and fantastic execution makes this album one that leaks into the deepest recesses of your mind, only to unleash a merciless swarm of of nightmares. The labyrinths of darkness erupt with an incorporeal style of Death Metal that is something truly special. A dirge of hypnotic and severe music that will act as a portal to somewhere beyond conceivable reality for those willing to venture alongside the trio, be forewarned, there is no guarantee of return.

An entrancing and monolithic follow up to “Death Velour” where the band have clearly a strong vision and direction which they know how to achieve. Disturbing yet beautiful Death Metal of spectral supremacy, the caverns have opened and the horrors spew forth, become one with the abyss.