Thursday, April 25, 2019

U N H O L Y T R I N I T Y M E G A P O S T

There are quite a few releases I am looking forward still in 2019, but none of them eclipse my excitement for the return of a certain triumvirate of bands. Connected not only through their intertwining lineage, but a thread of sonic filth, these acts have established themselves as some of the best death metal to come from the US in the last decade, and surely their upcoming efforts will only further their standing in death metal's putrid canon.


Prosanctus Inferi - Pulpit Sycophants (2019)


Artist: Prosanctus Inferi
Album: Pulpit Sycophants
Genre: Blackened Death Metal / War Metal 
Country: United States

If you read my previous post regarding Prosanctus Inferi, you'll know that they are a band I hold in very high regards. After a six-year silence, I was worried they had died an innocuous death, but luckily I was wrong; they are alive, kicking, and gearing up for the release of a new album entitled Hypnotic Blood Art (release date TBA). It would seem Pulpit Sycophants a demo that has so far only been released via Youtube, consists of rough versions of this upcoming full-length. Despite their being incomplete, the material on Pulpit Sycophants is impressive nonetheless, and seems to hint at the band returning to the bestial and crude blackened death metal they wielded on their earlier releases like Pandemonic Ululations of Vesperic Palpitation. Despite my love for their last record Noctambulous Jaws Within Sempiternal Night and its more pronounced death metal influence, I am still very much looking forward to what's coming next. 

C O M M O N  T H R E A D: Vocalist/guitarists Jake Kohn served as the bassist for Father Befouled from 2009 to 2012, appearing on two full-lengths and one split. Oh, and speaking of Father Befouled....

Father Befouled - Holy Rotten Blood [EP] (2019)


Artist: Father Befouled
Album: Holy Rotten Blood [EP]
Genre: Death Metal
Country: United States
Preview Track: 


When I first discovered Father Befouled, they were EASILY my least favorite of the three bands included in today's post; don't misunderstand, I still thought they were a fantastic band, but they didn't quite hit me like the other two projects. This internal ranking was shaken with the release of their last album, the excellent Desolate Gods. Like their previous entries, Father Befouled still promulgated a particularly doom-y and Incantation-esque version of death metal, however UNLIKE the albums that proceeded it, there were these insanely brief moments of melody that shone through the dirt and grime. Whilst melody in death metal isn't exactly groundbreaking anymore, it is rare that a band as dirty and cacophonous as Father Befouled to feature anything of the sort, and the result truly elevated the piece above not only their prior efforts, but many of their peers (**cough Incantation included cough **). With their upcoming EP Holy Rotten Blood, it is unclear if they will further indulge in this progression, but the slight chance of it alone is enough to be excited.

C O M M O N  T H R E A D: Father Befouled's current frontman/guitarist Justin Stubbs is also the frontman of Encoffination, two-piece he shares with ex-Father Befouled drummer and multi-band extraordinaire Elektrokutioner. Which actually reminds me...


Encoffination - We Proclaim Your Death O' Lord (2019)


Artist: Encoffination
Album: We Proclaim Your Death O' Lord
Genre: Funeral Doom/Death Metal
Country: United States
Preview Track: 


Encoffination are the slowest band I've ever heard in my fucking life. At first listen, they ALMOST seem like a parody of funeral doom. However, the further you delve into the bottomless pit of their music it becomes clear they are very serious about what they do. Imagine taking a single riff from Incantation (yes, they are a relevant comparison here too), stretching it out to ten minutes long, and adding a choir of unsettling atmsopherics not limited to but including the imposing ring of old, cracked bells and the inherently terrifying church organ. Utilizing these paragons of what should be light and then twisting their visage into something dark and wretched only makes their delivery more horrible and impacting, the exact effect Encoffination aim to achieve. We Proclaim Your Death O' Lord only promises to further instill fear in the religious and enthrall the blaspheming. 

C O M M O N  T H R E A D: If you've been paying attention, you get it by now. 

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