Band:	Deitus
Album:	Irreversible
Style:	Black metal
Release date:	July 2023

01. Incursion
02. Straight For Your Throat
03. A Scar For Serenity
04. Irreversible
05. Voyeur
06. As Long As They Fear

Deitus may be unknown to the vast majority of black metal fans out there, but they'll surely leave an Irreversible lasting impression on anyone who hears this latest offering.

It's hard to believe the UK-based band formed almost twenty years ago back in 2004, since during that time they had only released two full-length albums (plus one demo) prior to this latest output, Irreversible. Five years after their sophomore release, Via Dolorosa, the anonymous trio behind Deitus return for their third full-length release to date, Irreversible. This third outing features only six tracks, clocking in at just under forty minutes in length; however, what these tracks offer is remarkable, as the style this band goes by isn't exactly simple. Yes, they're mostly routed towards the black metal genre, as were their previous outputs, but black metal isn't all that's going on here, as listeners will soon find out.

The most striking feature about Deitus's approach is just how melodic their style is, as opposed to anything technical, dissonant, or black in the traditional sense. However, their style still manages to contain a certain unique atmospheric touch, which is made most evident early on with the short opening track "Incursion". This opener acts as a dark and eerie atmospheric intro, with a powerful, densely constructed mid-tempo rhythmic build-up, containing some impressive blackened doom guitar leads and tremolos, as well as thundering rolling d-beats. This ultimately leads to the devastating main opening song "Straight For Your Throat", which is an incredibly fitting title for such a track. Calling it heavy would be a major understatement; the atmosphere is so dense and torturous, you can almost feel yourself suffocating within its immensely gripping structure. This is due to the superb blackened doom riffing, presented with such a heavy, menacing guitar tone. The layering between the riffs and leads is done exceptionally well; rather than guitars overlapping one another, they work hand-in-hand in an almost perfect harmony. The harsh blackened growls/shrieks also have such an unforgiving presence, which is made all the more unforgiving by the vile lyrical content that the vocals deliver. With this song, the album is off to a hellish, fiery start, and it's clear early on just how terrific the sound quality is, thanks to the solid production.

With the following track, "A Scar For Serenity", the album takes a slightly unexpected turn, blasting off with such high ferocity from rabid meloblack tremolos, furious pounding blast beats, and thrashy shredding leads. This track has a shorter and more in-your-face kind of meloblack approach compared with the lengthier, doomier previous track; however, if you think the album is going strong up to this point, wait till you here what the title track has up its sleeve. Now, I admit I'm a sucker for some good old traditional melodic tremolo riffing, and here "Irreversible" certainly doesn't disappoint. The main riff on this song is outstanding to say the least; its great galloping hook is highly addictive (for me anyway), and this is made all the more impressive when the stunning leads kick in.

If you're expecting any more surprises along the way, then you won't be disappointed. The dark melancholic "Voyeur" takes a satisfying, yet bizarre, turn, treating listeners to an excellently performed 'Beauty and the Beast' vocal performance, provided by some angelic female vocals and beastly, gnarly death growls. This song begins at a slower tempo than anything else that's come so far, and even has a slight gothic/doom death touch to it; whether the track fits into the album's overall structure is debatable, but there's no denying the great songwriting. Irreversible then closes with "As Long As They Fear", which sure as hell is an epic way to close the album. The track begins in an epically driven melancholic fashion, with echoing female chants in the background, before the heavy death-doomy riffs take the centre stage, accompanied by tremendous leads. The death doom riff and beastly growls are what mostly drive the track forward, but there's the occasional breaking melodic lead, especially the striking shredding solo towards the end. The solo eventually leads into more blackened tremolo riffs and furious blast beats, as the growls grow ever more blackened.

To sum it up, I don't believe Irreversible has much to fault. Perhaps some of the song structures slightly lack in originality, and the songwriting, although good, is not utterly mind-blowing, but I honestly don't see any of that as much of an issue, especially when this album offers such memorable melodies, with an excellent sound quality and an all-round impressive performance. This may only be Deitus's third full-length release, but I honestly can't see any reason why they should go ignored if they carry on with this tremendous form.