ALBUM REVIEW: Sépulcre – Cryptic Temple of Otherworldly Abhorrations

French death metal horde Sépulcre present their debut full length! After really enjoying their demo and EP, I have high hopes for this one… Release is set for the 16th of October via Invictus Productions.

A very alluring introduction of ancient folkish ambience complete with strings, rattles and chimes sets the ritualistic tone for the record which quickly erupts into an ecstatic display of supreme extremity. Whammy dive-bombs and malicious riffing collides with crazed vocals and catastrophically intense drumming to converge into a singular force of pure evil. More spacious, yet no less impactful, moments of doomy eldritch horror come forth. These intertwine with the savagery of blasting torments gloriously and counterbalance the dynamics perfectly. I enjoy how the leads sort of spawn from the rhythm guitars like this lovecraftian appendage of unknown anatomical use before disappearing as abruptly as they came on. It gives a real sense of maddening volatility to the record. Furthermore the riffs and drumming may follow some of the essential hallmarks of death metal but equally feel ultimately very creative and linger in the air with a sepulchral stench. A strong combination of atmospheric but lethally hard death metal which introduces the album with enormous strength.

Retaining that undeniably wild streak in their songs, Sépulcre forge onwards with this menacing sense of total dread and anguish that permeates the sheer and brutish nature of their music. The instantly gripping riffs continue to flow with natural progressions and militantly tight drum work, giving a complex and yet memorable instrumental array of artillery. The vocals are inhuman and cleverly warp to fit the twisted contortions of the music at all times. Whatever is happening feels truly morbid throughout. Each abomination of musical despair is presented with pride and executed with sadistic force. Fusing these ritualistic moments into such a vengeful and crushing record while being able to hold a strong pace for the atmosphere to develop alongside the intensity is a perfect example Sépulcre having developed their superb songwriting abilities from the demo and EP up until this point where it as at its strongest to date. Not to say those releases were “lesser” or “inferior” but that their strengths shine through here while the band has chosen to move forward with it rather than re-hash old ideas.

Occasionally funereal, always aggressive. Sépulcre find a meaningful balance between their more introspective moments with the megaton force they wield and when they choose to strike, the hammer comes down with no mercy. I find the length of this record to be precisely right too. 7 songs, 42 minutes. Everything has room to develop, breathe, grow, reform, assault and yet nothing gets dull or tiresome or predictable. It’s the kind of LP where you think “I need some killer and visceral death metal that isn’t going to mess me around but actually has some dynamics too”. This fits that hunger that many of us regularly have like a fist penetrating a cranium. A lot of the more atmospheric death metal bands lack in aggression and vice versa. Sépulcre leave no such void and offer a complete morbid vision of tormenting hellscapes and sonic punishment. I knew a full length from these French maniacs would be worth the wait and it has been. It comes as no surprise to me that Invictus Productions continue to release music that I think is the very pinnacle of underground metal and with that I am glad to have reviewed another release that I believe adds something valuable to death metal as a whole.

A vicious and intoxicating opus of mesmerising death metal majesty. Fans of Grave Miasma, Coscradh or Lvcifyre will definitely love this LP, but do not be fooled into thinking this is one of those riff-lacking projects where a cavernous atmosphere is not a cool side effect but the only driving idea. Sépulcre play extremely commanding music that may captivate you but with lacerate and wound you with just as much ease. If you are ready to be bewitched but also violated, then listen to “Cryptic Temple of Otherworldly Abhorrations. If you are not, then let this serve as fair warning…