Swedish Death Metal

Wombbath, Agma (Transcending Obscurity 2021)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Thirty years in, Swedish death metal band Wombbath create an amazing new album that is one of the best they have ever released: Agma.

Wombbath started in 1990 and released the first EP of the band’s canon in 1992, Several Shapes. Having gained experience and popularity in the initial run through 1995, the musicians took a break for a couple of decades. Reforming in 2014, the band has been on a tear ever since, producing four long-players and five splits since, not including the new album. The writing is stronger and more inventive than ever, and Wombbath has positioned itself as a pivotal player in the international heavy music scene. The band includes founding member Håkan Stuvemark (guitar) with Jonny Pettersson (guitar and vocals), Thomas von Wachenfeldt (guitar and violin), Jon Rudin (drums), and Matt Davidson (bass).

Agma is a double album with sixteen tracks. The baseline is old school death metal, and you hear that in every track. In addition, most are augmented with surprising additions and twists that deepen the metal experience. For example, “At The Giant’s Feet” has unexpected high-pitch harmony vocals that drop from the sky and startle you. This song is followed by a string of punishing death metal songs, and then you hear “Blindly They Follow” with its soaring vocal pairing to go along with the blast beats and ravaging guitars. “Breathe In the Flames” rolls out at hyper-speed and also has a beautiful violin segment. The album is a sprawling forest of wonder.

Songs that stand out for me include “Misantropi Och Förakt” for its explosive moments and “The Age Of Death” for the sheer unlikeliness of its construction – elements work together that I would never have thought to join up. “In Decay They All Shall Fester” is another one that achieves unity by combining seemingly disparate constituents. The list of strand-outs could be a lot longer. Indeed, Agma might just be my favorite Wombbath album. Highly recommended.

Agma is out today through Transcending Obscurity Records. Check out the links below to see the stunning variety of merch, variants, and bundles that are available for this release. Transcending Obscurity is unmatched on this front – they always have incredible options for collectors.

Band painting by Benny Moberg.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://wombbathdeath.bandcamp.com/album/agma-death-metal

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/Wombbath

Transcending Obscurity, https://transcendingobscurity.aisamerch.com/

FFMB review of Tales Of Madness, https://flyingfiddlesticks.com/2020/12/18/wombbath-tales-of-madness-transcending-obscurity-2020/

Wombbath, Agma (Transcending Obscurity 2021)

Wombbath, Tales Of Madness (Transcending Obscurity 2020)

Wayne Edwards, , , , ,

Back for a second round this year, Wombbath honors the past and looks to the future with Tales Of Madness.

Sweden’s highly regarded Death Metal band Wombbath came together in the early 1990s. Their first LP in 1993, Internal Caustic Torments, made a solid impression and the future looked more than merely promising. Events conspired to sidetrack the band, but the return came in 2015 with furious energy, releasing Downfall Rising, a resurrection to be sure. Since then they have been on a rampage. The Great Desolation came out in 2018, and earlier this year, Choirs Of The Fallen. And now, driving the final nail in 2020’s coffin, we have Tales Of Madness, a collection of re-recorded classics alongside new songs. The lineup has evolved over time, too. Originator Håkan Stuvemark is joined by Jonny Pettersson, Thomas Von Wachenfeldt, Jon Rudin, and Matthew Davidson.

There are eight tracks on the new album. Some of the re-recorded songs go back to the band’s earliest demo, Brutal Mights (1992), including “Tales From The Dark Side,” “Brutal Mights,” and “Unholy Madness.” One of my favorites from way back when is there, too, “Lavatory Suicide Remains” from the 1994 EP Lavatory. The newly worked versions are true to the original intentions, with an upgraded, fuller sound. Several bands have made this move on their older material, with varying degrees of accomplishment. Here it is a great success.

Among the new pieces, “The Fleshly Existence Of Man” stands out for me because of its intensity and penetrating opening guitar line that curls around your inner ear and stays there. It includes a haunting violin and whispering sinister choir segment that serves to drives the hard music in deeper. Overall, it is astonishing how well the new versions of the old songs match up with the current music created by the band. The clear arc between the past and the now bodes well for the future – new music has already been announced for next year. I can’t wait to hear it. Recommended.

Tales Of Madness is available now from Transcending Obscurity through their on-line shop(s) and other outlets as well, like Bandcamp. The digital is instant gratification, and if you are into solid objects, no label has greater variety or more impressive products than Transcending Obscurity.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://wombbathdeath.bandcamp.com/album/tales-of-madness-death-metal

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/Wombbath

Transcending Obscurity, https://tometal.com/

US Store, https://transcendingobscurity.aisamerch.com/

Wombbath, Tales Of Madness (Transcending Obscurity 2020)

Revolting, The Shadow At The World’s End review (Transcending Obscurity 2020)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , , ,

The next episode in the Revolting saga is another Old School Death Metal juggernaut.

Rogga Johansson is the driving force in Revolting. Joined by Tobias and Martin on the new album, they play in the Swedish Death Metal vein, old school style. That means a fast tempo, razor sharp, tight lead shreds, and the classic invader/dominator commanding coarse vocals. The band released a demo in 2008, and since then has issued an EP, a split with Morbid Ossuary, and six full length albums, the most recent being Monolith Of Madness in 2018. The Shadow At The World’s End, then, is their seventh LP, and if anything it is more creative and energetic than the ones that have come before.

There are nine songs on the new album, all at radio length and every one a ripping sonic roar. “Defleshed” is the opener, and from the first note it is like coming in on the middle of a high speed car chase. The vocals are gruff yet decipherable, and the riffs are layered. “1888” is next with a clompy rhythm up front for a short breather before the title track throws sparks and kicks it up a notch. There are a few somewhat down-tempo paced tracks, like “Daggers That Mimic Life’s Pain,” and there the power goes into the heavy so “slow” is not really a good way to describe the music. The whirring pace of songs like “To The Bitter Bleeding End” keep you on your feet all the way through, and the relative brevity of the compositions allows no attention drift. This is another excellent set from Revolting. Recommended.

The Shadow At The World’s End is available now. You can get the digital at Bandcamp. You can also order any of the amazing bundles offered by Transcending Obscurity through Bandcamp or through the labels’ US store.

Links.

Revolting Bandcamp, https://revoltingdeath.bandcamp.com/album/the-shadow-at-the-worlds-end-death-metal

Revolting Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/revoltingdeathmetal

Label website, https://tometal.com/

Label Bandcamp, https://transcendingobscurity.bandcamp.com/

Label US Store, https://transcendingobscurity.aisamerch.com/search/?q=revolting

Revolting, The Shadow At The World’s End review (Transcending Obscurity 2020)

Furnace, Dark Vistas review (Soulseller Records 2020)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Swedish Death Metal band Furnace release their second album this year, Dark Vistas.

Rogga Johansson (guitars, lead vocals) and Peter Svensson (bass, backing vocals) are joined by drummer Lars Demoké for the concept album Dark Vistas. It is astonishing to have a second album this year from Furnace (according to the Metal Archives), most particularly because it is essentially one big story. That is a lot of music, taken together. Maybe it is just a release timing coincidence. In any case, it is great to have both albums out now. The other album is Black Stone Church, and make sure you give it a listen, too. It is very good.

The primary themes on the new one are in the Cthulhu Mythos H. P. Lovecraft created. The dark, magical world of decadence and suffering is the perfect place for Death Metal, and Furnace make the most of the complementarities.

The music is on the Heavy Metal side of Death Metal – that is, melodic and broad with enough of an edge to know there is a knife. The vocals are coarse and decipherable while the tempo hovers in the midrange. Cinematic I would call it.

If you have read Lovecraft, then you will slide right into the narrative of the album. If not, you can catch up as you go along. The music is riff-heavy, leaning on the vocals and guitar harmony rather than big lead breaks. Some of my favorite tracks include “From The Blackest Void” which manages to be dreary and upbeat at the same time, and “The Calling” (released as a single) for its grand scope and its insistent percussion. There is a through line binding the entire set together and so you will hear recurring elements until it is all resolved in the end.

Dark Vistas is out now and available from Soulseller Records. You can also get it at Bandcamp.

Links.

Furnace Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/blackstonechurch666/

Soulseller Records Bandcamp, https://soulsellerrecords.bandcamp.com/

Soulseller website, http://www.soulsellerrecords.com/

Furnace, Dark Vistas review (Soulseller Records 2020)