Death Karma - The History Of Death & Burial Rituals Part I - guest review
Death Karma - The History Of Death & Burial Rituals Part I - guest review
Band
Death Karma Release date
February 13, 2015 Tracklist
01. Slovakia - Journey Of The Soul02. Madagascar - Famadihana
03. Mexico - Chichén Itzá
04. Czech Republic - Úmrlcí Prkna
05. India - Towers Of Silence
06. China - Hanging Coffins
Guest review by
flightoficarus March 23, 2015
Unfamiliar to the group, I was not surprised when my Googling turned up a similar masterpiece in Cult Of Fire's मृत्यु का तापसी अनुध्यान. Sharing two members, including vocalist and mastermind Infernal Vlad, The History Of Death & Burial Rituals Part I not only reaches the heights of that album, but may even surpass it in conviction and grit. I may not understand a word of Vlad's language, but that does not for an instant keep me from hanging on every goosebump-inducing howl.
Compositions are lush in emotion and concise in structure. While not sharing the Indian influences of his last LP, the ever-present, looming organs return to complement the simple-yet memorable riffs. Production has a cavernous quality with plenty reverb and a sense of depth. This is most apparent in the bass drum, which sounds like the hammer of goddamn Thor. The recording may be raw, but not at the expense of low end.
One of my personal hallmarks of a great album is an ability to create a sense of consistency throughout while still showcasing variety from track to track. Death Karma must have been reading my diary. From the sermon-esque intro of "Slovakia" to the pounding, largely instrumental "India," the almost hopeful "China" to the spiraling madness of "Mexico;" The History Of Death & Burial Rituals part I still manages to maintain enough aesthetic throughout its 6 tracks to build something truly special.
So far, this is the best black metal I have heard of 2015, but it's obviously early to cast a vote. At the very least, it warrants your time and attention for ballot consideration. We have all been known to jump the gun on an album only to find our initial impression fade over time, but my compulsions so far have proved otherwise with this one. Over the first week I found myself at their bandcamp page on at least a dozen occasions, and I sat through its duration every time with newfound adoration. I'll end here before I devolve into any further fanboy tropes. The album is about 7 Euro for digital on bandcamp, but the lovely artwork warranted my purchase through the German label on Discogs. Help a brotha out, eh?
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 10 |
| Songwriting: | 10 |
| Originality: | 8 |
| Production: | 9 |
Written by flightoficarus | March 23, 2015
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Comments
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Posts: 40071
Good album but nowhere near classic status.
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996 
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Posts: 1469
A great album. I like the variation between tracks.
---- "Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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Posts: 1127 Written by Lord_Regnier on 19.07.2015 at 05:15 Indeed, this is still in regular rotation for me. Check out my site MetalTrenches.com for more daily underground stuff. So much good, undiscovered music out there.
---- Daily underground metal recommendations at Metal Trenches. Watch metal content on the Metal Trenches YouTube Channel.
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Posts: 1469 Written by flightoficarus on 19.07.2015 at 07:32 Thanks. I will check the site as soon as I have enough time. About this album, I'm much more a Black Metal fan than a Death Metal one, so I prefer when vocals are more Black Metal. This album, however, has lots of variation also in vocals, so the more Death Metal sections don't bother me at all. Anyway, I like some Death Metal vocals. It's just that I'm more picky when it comes to growls than Black Metal vocals.
---- "Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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Posts: 3647
I doubt they'll be remixing it since the latest CoF EP also had atrocious production. They seem to really like this "let's demolish your ears as hard as we can" approach nowadays. I just hope the next CoF album sounds better, but I'm pretty pessimistic. Chances are the music will at least be better than this though.
---- I hate bonus tracks
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Posts: 1127 Written by [user id=4365] on 03.09.2015 at 20:40 Glad have you back, you picky bastard.
---- Daily underground metal recommendations at Metal Trenches. Watch metal content on the Metal Trenches YouTube Channel.
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