Label: Self-released
Production: Mephistophelian, Miguel Tereso
Release date: 4. 9. 2020
Album length: 35:22
It almost feels unreal that one of the biggest hopes of Slovenian death metal has finally come back. More than five years ago, Mephistophelian looked like one of the most promising acts around, with the potential to show how easily Slovenian bands can hold their own against the big international death metal names. And then, all of a sudden, silence. The band did let people know the album was being recorded, but until this year it was nothing but a mystery.
This year the band finally revealed all the details, including the name of the drummer. The drums were tracked by the seasoned Romain Goulon, who previously made his mark in brutal outfits like Benighted, Disavowed and Necrophagist. Another big deal is that the band found the right sound engineer and the right studio for post-production. In brutal death metal, the instruments can easily get lost and the whole thing ends up sounding like meaningless junk with no rhyme or reason. Portuguese producer Miguel Tereso did a superb job at Demigod Recordings and helped shape a final sound that Mephistophelian truly deserve.
Mephistophelian’s debut, which is also their one and only, runs for about 35 minutes. From the very first track, Abysmal Discorded Endeavour, the band makes it clear there will be no compromises. They swear by speed, so fans of brutal death metal will definitely be thrilled. With every track the picture of the whole record gets clearer. Even though speed and brutality are front and center, the band hasn’t forgotten about punchy, slower sections, which you could also call breakdowns. Technicality isn’t foreign to them either. A great example is the track The Purge, which boasts incredible dynamics, polish and a clever structure.
In the genre Mephistophelian play, it’s hard to make a record that’s varied enough while still keeping brutality as the common thread. With Mephistophelian there’s not even that feeling of tracks being stretched out, which is pretty common practice these days. Even though brutality is the main focus, the record is quite colorful and diverse. The slightly longer track Omnipotent, for instance, surprises with a slower section without losing any intensity. This was clearly a well-thought-out approach to songwriting.
You can pick up influences from many bands, but above all you can tell the band is aware of both the old-school and the modern stuff. You could say they use an interesting combination of the two. It’s hard to single out favorites, since the dose of brutality is rock solid with every track. Still, some tracks have interesting in-between passages that make the whole thing that much more interesting, maybe even standout. It’s definitely worth pointing out the closing track, Violation Of The Mind, where the brutality wraps up with a gloomier, melodic outro, which brings the whole thing full circle.
What’s really fascinating is that the whole thing works. It doesn’t feel like any instrument is stuck in the background. The sound is full. It’s also hard to say what stands out most. The guitars serve up fast, brutal riffs nonstop, the bass lines round everything out nicely, and on drums the blast beat takes center stage and just won’t let up. The vocals deserve praise too: deep enough to sit nicely with the low-tuned guitars, yet still intelligible.
This album is tailor-made for fans of brutal death metal acts like Suffocation, Disavowed, Aborted, Dying Fetus and so on. Anotos is a record that smartly marries elements of the old and new death metal schools. It brings intensity, zero compromise and plenty of dynamics. The saddest part of all is that this album is the band’s only release. Still, it can safely be said this is a top-tier achievement of the Slovenian metal scene, so here’s hoping the guys get the urge to create something new or return to the stage.
9/10
Tracklist:
- Abysmal Discorded Endeavour
- A Void Reminiscence
- The Purge
- Primal Un-Godliness
- Omnipotent
- Flesh Canvas
- Without Contingent Of Prosperity
- Shroudslice
- F.E.AR.
- Violation Of The Mind
Lineup:
ROMAIN GOULON – drums
KRISTJAN BAJUK – guitar
DENI PETRAŠ – vocals
RENATO JUREJEVČIČ – guitar
DALIBOR VLADIČ – bass
