The second Necrot full-length delivers on the promise of the first, and raises the bar well up in the process.
I first found out about Necrot by listening to Mortuous because Chad Gailey plays drums in both bands (and he has actually been in Necrot longer). After I heard The Labrynth (2016), which is a compilation of demos, I immediately hit 2017’s Blood Offerings and I was hooked. Not only was Gailey’s drumming a monstrous pummeling, Luca Indrio (bass, vocals) and Sonny Reinhardt (guitars) completed the trinity in such a superlative fashion I had to have more. And now we all do with Mortal.
Coalescing in Oakland almost ten years ago, the early music of Necrot was infused with an elemental, volcanic energy that burst out like an exploding lava flow. In more recent years the feral zeal has found a more defined form and the band has developed into a Death Metal agency with an outer crust of punk.
Mortal begins with “Your Hell,” a story of suffering and revenge rendered at the speed of a roaring river and colored deep black. “I’ve built a grave for your dreams, I’ll make it your home.” A vivid image that cuts right to it, and no mistake. Every song has this collider push with boulder crushing percussion, psyche twisting vocals, and ravening guitars. “Asleep Forever,” “Stench of Decay,” and “Your Hell” were issued during the lead up to the full release, and they show you a big part of the story, but not everything. While “Stench” might be the representative track, you have to listen all the way through or you’ll miss the triumvirate closing sequence of “Sinister Will,” “Malevolent Intentions,” and “Mortal.” Whether they are meant to go together or not, I heard them as a suite that tops off the megalith the music created. The lead guitar in “Sinister” is positively searing, the rhythm of “Malevolent” is charging and unstoppable, and “Mortal” is a final permanent seal that entombs human arrogance – “Mortal dies. Everything fades away.” We’ll all be gone one day, but not this music. It will live on. Highly recommended.
Preorders are up now in many forms and variants (links below), and the full album drops Friday, August 28. Hearing the music is the most important thing, but if you also want a physical memento, you better hurry because they are selling fast.
Band photo by Chris Johnston.
Links.
https://tankcrimes.merchtable.com/
https://www.facebook.com/cyclesofpain
Flying Fiddlesticks Music Blog 