Band:	Inthyflesh
Album:	The Flaming Death
Style:	Black metal
Release date:	September 09, 2016
A review by:	Susan

01. The Sinister Herald Of Death
02. Blood Howling Eternity
03. Subterranean Harbinger
04. Oppressed Under Deceit
05. Through The Splendour Of Night
06. Forever Insanity
07. May The Wisdom Of The Dead Return
08. Sorrowful Moonlight Pt. I - The Fever Of Blood
09. Breath Of Darkness
10. The Brightness Of Your Decay
11. Beyond What Eyes Can See
12. A Thousand Tongues Burning
13. A Grasp Between Hate And Madness
14. Velvet Burial Shroud
15. Rituals Inflicted Upon Scars
16. Abysmal Silence
17. Dismal Awakening
18. Sorrowful Moonlight Pt. II - Catacombs Of Infinity

The Flaming Death is an incredibly hypnotizing album of raw black metal. Portugal's Inthyflesh shows that you only need the barest of tools to create startling atmosphere, if you know what you're doing. Indeed, they know.

The band formed in 2000 and has released a nice stack of demos, EPs, and splits, though after 16 years this is only their fourth full-length studio release. Perhaps making up for lost time, they made this a double album. And it's worth all 112 hypnotic minutes. Yes, almost 2 hours of quality destruction and despair. You all know I'm usually the first in line to criticize bands for making albums TOO long. Rarely does such quality music cover such a vast time frame; yet, The Flaming Death is somehow easily digestible in one sitting, driving you ever onward as if in chains.

How do they do it? Well, simplicity can be exquisite. For instance, the little melody in penultimate track "Dismal Awakening" easily burrows into your ear, demanding a repeated listen of the entire 2-hour epic. Then there's the production, which is classic and raw, perfectly showcasing those mesmerizing guitars. While some bands think this is achieved by just any old cheap production, Inthyflesh made purposeful choices in presenting their skillfully crafted shroud of black metal. Infected with timely tempo changes and that driving guitar duo, The Flaming Death is also served by a vocalist who acts as both musical instrument and narrator. The classic shrieks are simultaneously calming and deeply unsettling; as they should be.

The press release contained several cheesy black metal tropes, all of which rang true with sincerity when listening to the music. Rarely before have I felt the urge to use "horde" with a straight face; likewise, the songs were referred to as "hymns," which also feels curiously accurate. Usually, press releases give you an inflated description of the album or band, with flowery adjectives and undue praise, best skimmed or skipped entirely. This was one of those fun moments where the hype was dead on; I almost just posted it here with a note saying, "It's true. It's ALL TRUE!" instead of actually writing my own review.

Inthyflesh reminds me of why I started loving black metal in the first place. I don't listen to it nearly as much as other genres and this band is really making me ask myself why the hell that is.

The Flaming Death comes out September 9th jointly via Altare Productions and BlackSeed Productions. Hear advance track "Blood Howling Eternity" at Blackseed's bandcamp page.