#apr25 — Public Fediverse posts

Flummox – Southern Progress Review

By Kenstrosity

Originally slated to be my main Thing You Might Have Missed feature, Tennessee avant-garde metal quintet Flummox’s fifth LP Southern Progress caught me completely off guard. Attracted to the prompt “their most obnoxious album yet,” I wasn’t sure what to expect from my first exposure to Flummox’s work. I figured it might be weird, but it’s also distinctive, fun, and infectious. Fearlessly creative, deeply detailed, lyrically cutting, and stupidly intelligent, Southern Progress rapidly became my favorite record released so far this year. It doesn’t seem likely now that anything out of the metalverse this year will surpass it.

Southern Progress embodies a rhizomic system of inspirations and influences that, when harnessed by Flummox’s wacky brains, emerges from the soil as something wholly unique in style, sound, and intent. My best attempt to contextualize this material would involve names from the progsphere like Fair to Midland, Native Construct, Pink Floyd, early Queen, and Mike Patton; purveyors of the extreme such as Strapping Young Lad and Slugdge; avant-garde touchstones like Mr. Bungle, Igorrr, and Diablo Swing Orchestra; genre-jumpers such as King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard; and even cinematic composers like Danny Elfman and Hans Zimmer.1 Ultimately, though, there is no comfortable comparison. Flummox are a singular entity of weird, wild, theatrical metal capable of nailing every bizarre idea they throw at me, such that in less than a week, I had a majority portion of Southern Progress’ 57-minute runtime pinned to my psyche. All the while, its candid exposition of the queer and genderfluid experience in the Bible Belt (“Southern Progress”) struck a chord so rarely plucked by music on this sphere, and its inspired exploration of the neurodivergent experience as one of its parallel plot lines (“Executive Dysfunction”) gave me an easy avenue to resonate even more deeply with its voice.

The tricky reality of Southern Progress is that 750 words is woefully insufficient to encompass all that Flummox achieves, but its primary triumph is in universal songwriting excellence. Music like this marks a once-in-a-blue-moon occasion—and an ambitious undertaking—but Flummox makes it look effortless as they balance the beauty of melodious, theatrical compositions with the livid, frothing rabidity of searing, off-kilter riffs, thunderous rhythms, and revolutionary attitude (“Southern Progress,” “Femto’s Theme,” “Long Pork,” “Executive Dysfunction”). While these elements are familiar to anyone with experience in the metalverse, their twisted forms instead leave a vivid impression of something altogether more eccentric and uncanny (“Southern Progress,” “Nesting Doll,” “Locust Eater,” “Coyote Gospel”). Well-defined structures and concrete themes play their part in making sure these warped representations stick. Presenting every unhinged idea, cynical line, and explosive outburst inside a digestible package makes Southern Progress somehow even stranger and more enthralling for its deceiving accessibility (“What We’re In For…,” “Always Something Going Down,” “Siren Shock,” “Flumlindalë”).

In spite of its unquestionable adoption of metallic methods, Southern Progress is an intensely theatrical affair unfit for the genrephobic, but is nonetheless something everyone should experience at least once. Challenging in a different way than Imperial Triumphant or other known creators of what certain pundits call “not music,” Flummox is similarly fearless in their exploration of style and technique, and equally meticulous in application and execution. To that end, Southern Progress’ music is mutated and maniacal, but grounded through several root elements: emotional depth, societal awareness, thoughtful critiques, and artistic integrity. More than just a vehicle for that cogent societal commentary, the potent passion that each member of Flummox hemorrhaged into Southern Progress is unmatched by all except the unfuckwithable technical quality of their writing and performances. The fact that this intangible factor boasts such strong presence inside of, and coalesces so harmoniously with, the tangible product proves that Flummox’s dedication, attention to detail, and intentional artistry contributes meaningful substance and significance not just to Southern Progress on its own, but also to the greater body of metal as we know it today.

It is for this reason that Flummox’s Southern Progress isn’t just an excellent album, but also an important one. Aside from its high artistic merit, Southern Progress is a timely and fierce challenge against the dehumanization of queer, gender-nonconforming, and even neurodivergent communities across the American South—and, by extension, the country—especially by organized religious (read: Christian) entities. But it’s also a celebration, a triumphant expression of pride and love and resilience that only comes from openly and unashamedly discovering, struggling with, and ultimately embodying all that you are in spirit, body, and mind. Everyone deserves to know this feeling without fear of stigmatization, fetishization, violence, or isolation. Southern Progress is an unorthodox and fun, but wildly effective, advocate for that cause.

Rating: Excellent!2
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Needlejuice Records
Websites: flummoxed.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/flummoxband
Releases Worldwide: April 11th, 2025

Show 2 footnotes

1. Specifically, Zimmer’s work for Rango’s OST. ↩
2. You should expect to see me within a year or so, Contrite and ashamed that I didn’t award this the coveted Iconic score! ↩

#2025 #45 #AmericanMetal #Apr25 #AvantGarde #BlackMetal #DannyElfman #DeathMetal #DiabloSwingOrchestra #ExperimentalMetal #FairToMidland #Flummox #FolkMetal #Gospel #HansZimmer #Igorrr #ImperialTriumphant #KingGizzardAndTheLizardWizard #MelodicMetal #MikePatton #MrBungle #NativeConstruct #NeedlejuiceRecords #PinkFloyd #ProgressiveMetal #Queen #Review #Reviews #Slugdge #SouthernProgress #StrappingYoungLad

Chestcrush – ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ Review

By Tyme

Chestcrush is what happens when you fuck around and find out. These three blackened death dealers from Edinburgh, Scotland, formed in 2020, released their independent debut album, Vthelygmia, in 2021. That’s when Chestcrush caught my ear for the first time, penning one of my favorite songs, “Different Shepherd, Same Sheep.” After swapping original vocalist Thomas Blanc for Topias Jokipii, who debuted his wares on 2022’s Apechtheia EP, Chestcrush is back with its sophomore prüno-piss and vinegar-filled platter, ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ. Translated from Greek to mean ‘soul extractor,’ ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ metaphorically describes an experience or person that is so incredibly tormenting to you that it feels like it’s pulling your very soul out through your mouth. Will I need my jaw re-aligned after listening to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ, or is this dog just a toothless barker?

Chestcrush executes its misanthropic, anti-everything brand of nihilism by fusing blackened deathgrind with sludgy, doomy industrialism on ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ. And even with the grindier bits dialed back, ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣA sounds like a bloodied blend of Anaal Nathrakh, Immolation, and Napalm Death sprinkled with an extra vitriolic dash o’ Nails. Evangelos Vasilakos crushes chests and eardrums with an onslaught of riffs full of brutish chugs, crusty sludge, and deathly density (“Existence is Punishment”). Drummer Robin Stone (Ashen Horde) brings the mutha-fuckin’ skulls to the yard with his rib-rattling, Anaal Nathrakhian double kick work, which often serves as a tempodic counterpoint to Evan’s wall of sound bass and guitar destruction (“We Shall Be Devoured by the Offspring of Our Own Flesh”). Topping off this sundae of fuck-off-fun-day decimation are the Mikael Åkerfeldtish vocals of Jokipii, whose roars and guttural growls bring an altogether beastlier edge to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ‘s throat work. Chestcrush will not make you feel good about yourself, nor will they have you looking hopefully into the future.

Speaking of hope, if not abandoned wholly before entering Chestcrush‘s world, it will be by the time “Every Single Word That Comes Out of Your Filthy Hole Is an Infectious Lie a Spreading Disease” invades your earholes. It is a punishing, anti-religious anthem full of chunky riffs, dissonant tremolos, Stone’s inhuman drumming, and Jokipii’s tortured growls and screams, prefaced by an ominous warning, ‘Until the last stone, from the last church, falls on the last priest.’ And as the screechy, staticky ending of “Hang Them! Torch Them!” gives way to the tolling bells of the sludgy behemoth and album closer, “As the Damned Writhe in Eternal Woe,” it is clear that Chestcrush hates us all. ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ has no high points, no zenith; it is a cavalcade of sorrow, a series of nadirs plumbing depths subterranean of Dante’s seventh circle.

From the very Hellraiser-esque cover art courtesy of Vladimir Chebakov to the forty-minute runtime, Chestcrush‘s ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ is infinitely more mature than its predecessor, Vthelygmia. I attribute this leap in maturation to two things. First, Chestcrush‘s songwriting has blossomed like a blackened rose, resulting in fully developed compositions that wend, wind, and weave within themselves, an ebb and flow of drama that casts a pall of abject hopelessness over the entire affair. Second, the addition of vocalist Topias Jokipii, whose beefier delivery and propensity to stay in his lower, more guttural register better fit Chestrcush‘s aural aesthetic. I have little in the way of criticism for ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ, but there was something that stood out, which is a brief screech of feedback that rears its head throughout the album, mainly as an exclamation point. It works when employed to create an intersong dynamic (“Every Single Word…”), but it becomes grating when tacked on the end of nearly every track, sometimes twice (“We Shall Be Devoured…”).

Chestcrush has penned a dirge celebrating the death of humanity and is the human embodiment of existential hate. You’ll not be blasting ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ poolside this summer, cracking beers and seltzers with your buddies and their wives, crisping flesh in the sun. Chestcrush is of darkness, despair, and destitution, and that is where ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ will take you. I have committed several hours to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ in preparation for this review, and this time has left me spent, my jaw firmly wired shut, soul removed. I think I need to go and listen to some Fellowship now.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320kbps mp3
Label: Self-Released
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: April 4, 2025

#2025 #35 #AnaalNathrakh #Apr25 #BlackMetal #Chestcrush #DeathMetal #Immolation #Nails #NapalmDeath #Review #Reviews #ScottishMetal #Sludge #ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ

Chestcrush – ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ Review

By Tyme

Chestcrush is what happens when you fuck around and find out. These three blackened death dealers from Edinburgh, Scotland, formed in 2020, released their independent debut album, Vthelygmia, in 2021. That’s when Chestcrush caught my ear for the first time, penning one of my favorite songs, “Different Shepherd, Same Sheep.” After swapping original vocalist Thomas Blanc for Topias Jokipii, who debuted his wares on 2022’s Apechtheia EP, Chestcrush is back with its sophomore prüno-piss and vinegar-filled platter, ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ. Translated from Greek to mean ‘soul extractor,’ ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ metaphorically describes an experience or person that is so incredibly tormenting to you that it feels like it’s pulling your very soul out through your mouth. Will I need my jaw re-aligned after listening to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ, or is this dog just a toothless barker?

Chestcrush executes its misanthropic, anti-everything brand of nihilism by fusing blackened deathgrind with sludgy, doomy industrialism on ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ. And even with the grindier bits dialed back, ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣA sounds like a bloodied blend of Anaal Nathrakh, Immolation, and Napalm Death sprinkled with an extra vitriolic dash o’ Nails. Evangelos Vasilakos crushes chests and eardrums with an onslaught of riffs full of brutish chugs, crusty sludge, and deathly density (“Existence is Punishment”). Drummer Robin Stone (Ashen Horde) brings the mutha-fuckin’ skulls to the yard with his rib-rattling, Anaal Nathrakhian double kick work, which often serves as a tempodic counterpoint to Evan’s wall of sound bass and guitar destruction (“We Shall Be Devoured by the Offspring of Our Own Flesh”). Topping off this sundae of fuck-off-fun-day decimation are the Mikael Åkerfeldtish vocals of Jokipii, whose roars and guttural growls bring an altogether beastlier edge to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ‘s throat work. Chestcrush will not make you feel good about yourself, nor will they have you looking hopefully into the future.

Speaking of hope, if not abandoned wholly before entering Chestcrush‘s world, it will be by the time “Every Single Word That Comes Out of Your Filthy Hole Is an Infectious Lie a Spreading Disease” invades your earholes. It is a punishing, anti-religious anthem full of chunky riffs, dissonant tremolos, Stone’s inhuman drumming, and Jokipii’s tortured growls and screams, prefaced by an ominous warning, ‘Until the last stone, from the last church, falls on the last priest.’ And as the screechy, staticky ending of “Hang Them! Torch Them!” gives way to the tolling bells of the sludgy behemoth and album closer, “As the Damned Writhe in Eternal Woe,” it is clear that Chestcrush hates us all. ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ has no high points, no zenith; it is a cavalcade of sorrow, a series of nadirs plumbing depths subterranean of Dante’s seventh circle.

From the very Hellraiser-esque cover art courtesy of Vladimir Chebakov to the forty-minute runtime, Chestcrush‘s ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ is infinitely more mature than its predecessor, Vthelygmia. I attribute this leap in maturation to two things. First, Chestcrush‘s songwriting has blossomed like a blackened rose, resulting in fully developed compositions that wend, wind, and weave within themselves, an ebb and flow of drama that casts a pall of abject hopelessness over the entire affair. Second, the addition of vocalist Topias Jokipii, whose beefier delivery and propensity to stay in his lower, more guttural register better fit Chestrcush‘s aural aesthetic. I have little in the way of criticism for ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ, but there was something that stood out, which is a brief screech of feedback that rears its head throughout the album, mainly as an exclamation point. It works when employed to create an intersong dynamic (“Every Single Word…”), but it becomes grating when tacked on the end of nearly every track, sometimes twice (“We Shall Be Devoured…”).

Chestcrush has penned a dirge celebrating the death of humanity and is the human embodiment of existential hate. You’ll not be blasting ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ poolside this summer, cracking beers and seltzers with your buddies and their wives, crisping flesh in the sun. Chestcrush is of darkness, despair, and destitution, and that is where ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ will take you. I have committed several hours to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ in preparation for this review, and this time has left me spent, my jaw firmly wired shut, soul removed. I think I need to go and listen to some Fellowship now.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320kbps mp3
Label: Self-Released
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: April 4, 2025

#2025 #35 #AnaalNathrakh #Apr25 #BlackMetal #Chestcrush #DeathMetal #Immolation #Nails #NapalmDeath #Review #Reviews #ScottishMetal #Sludge #ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ

Chestcrush – ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ Review

By Tyme

Chestcrush is what happens when you fuck around and find out. These three blackened death dealers from Edinburgh, Scotland, formed in 2020, released their independent debut album, Vthelygmia, in 2021. That’s when Chestcrush caught my ear for the first time, penning one of my favorite songs, “Different Shepherd, Same Sheep.” After swapping original vocalist Thomas Blanc for Topias Jokipii, who debuted his wares on 2022’s Apechtheia EP, Chestcrush is back with its sophomore prüno-piss and vinegar-filled platter, ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ. Translated from Greek to mean ‘soul extractor,’ ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ metaphorically describes an experience or person that is so incredibly tormenting to you that it feels like it’s pulling your very soul out through your mouth. Will I need my jaw re-aligned after listening to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ, or is this dog just a toothless barker?

Chestcrush executes its misanthropic, anti-everything brand of nihilism by fusing blackened deathgrind with sludgy, doomy industrialism on ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ. And even with the grindier bits dialed back, ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣA sounds like a bloodied blend of Anaal Nathrakh, Immolation, and Napalm Death sprinkled with an extra vitriolic dash o’ Nails. Evangelos Vasilakos crushes chests and eardrums with an onslaught of riffs full of brutish chugs, crusty sludge, and deathly density (“Existence is Punishment”). Drummer Robin Stone (Ashen Horde) brings the mutha-fuckin’ skulls to the yard with his rib-rattling, Anaal Nathrakhian double kick work, which often serves as a tempodic counterpoint to Evan’s wall of sound bass and guitar destruction (“We Shall Be Devoured by the Offspring of Our Own Flesh”). Topping off this sundae of fuck-off-fun-day decimation are the Mikael Åkerfeldtish vocals of Jokipii, whose roars and guttural growls bring an altogether beastlier edge to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ‘s throat work. Chestcrush will not make you feel good about yourself, nor will they have you looking hopefully into the future.

Speaking of hope, if not abandoned wholly before entering Chestcrush‘s world, it will be by the time “Every Single Word That Comes Out of Your Filthy Hole Is an Infectious Lie a Spreading Disease” invades your earholes. It is a punishing, anti-religious anthem full of chunky riffs, dissonant tremolos, Stone’s inhuman drumming, and Jokipii’s tortured growls and screams, prefaced by an ominous warning, ‘Until the last stone, from the last church, falls on the last priest.’ And as the screechy, staticky ending of “Hang Them! Torch Them!” gives way to the tolling bells of the sludgy behemoth and album closer, “As the Damned Writhe in Eternal Woe,” it is clear that Chestcrush hates us all. ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ has no high points, no zenith; it is a cavalcade of sorrow, a series of nadirs plumbing depths subterranean of Dante’s seventh circle.

From the very Hellraiser-esque cover art courtesy of Vladimir Chebakov to the forty-minute runtime, Chestcrush‘s ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ is infinitely more mature than its predecessor, Vthelygmia. I attribute this leap in maturation to two things. First, Chestcrush‘s songwriting has blossomed like a blackened rose, resulting in fully developed compositions that wend, wind, and weave within themselves, an ebb and flow of drama that casts a pall of abject hopelessness over the entire affair. Second, the addition of vocalist Topias Jokipii, whose beefier delivery and propensity to stay in his lower, more guttural register better fit Chestrcush‘s aural aesthetic. I have little in the way of criticism for ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ, but there was something that stood out, which is a brief screech of feedback that rears its head throughout the album, mainly as an exclamation point. It works when employed to create an intersong dynamic (“Every Single Word…”), but it becomes grating when tacked on the end of nearly every track, sometimes twice (“We Shall Be Devoured…”).

Chestcrush has penned a dirge celebrating the death of humanity and is the human embodiment of existential hate. You’ll not be blasting ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ poolside this summer, cracking beers and seltzers with your buddies and their wives, crisping flesh in the sun. Chestcrush is of darkness, despair, and destitution, and that is where ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ will take you. I have committed several hours to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ in preparation for this review, and this time has left me spent, my jaw firmly wired shut, soul removed. I think I need to go and listen to some Fellowship now.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320kbps mp3
Label: Self-Released
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: April 4, 2025

#2025 #35 #AnaalNathrakh #Apr25 #BlackMetal #Chestcrush #DeathMetal #Immolation #Nails #NapalmDeath #Review #Reviews #ScottishMetal #Sludge #ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ

Chestcrush – ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ Review

By Tyme

Chestcrush is what happens when you fuck around and find out. These three blackened death dealers from Edinburgh, Scotland, formed in 2020, released their independent debut album, Vthelygmia, in 2021. That’s when Chestcrush caught my ear for the first time, penning one of my favorite songs, “Different Shepherd, Same Sheep.” After swapping original vocalist Thomas Blanc for Topias Jokipii, who debuted his wares on 2022’s Apechtheia EP, Chestcrush is back with its sophomore prüno-piss and vinegar-filled platter, ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ. Translated from Greek to mean ‘soul extractor,’ ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ metaphorically describes an experience or person that is so incredibly tormenting to you that it feels like it’s pulling your very soul out through your mouth. Will I need my jaw re-aligned after listening to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ, or is this dog just a toothless barker?

Chestcrush executes its misanthropic, anti-everything brand of nihilism by fusing blackened deathgrind with sludgy, doomy industrialism on ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ. And even with the grindier bits dialed back, ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣA sounds like a bloodied blend of Anaal Nathrakh, Immolation, and Napalm Death sprinkled with an extra vitriolic dash o’ Nails. Evangelos Vasilakos crushes chests and eardrums with an onslaught of riffs full of brutish chugs, crusty sludge, and deathly density (“Existence is Punishment”). Drummer Robin Stone (Ashen Horde) brings the mutha-fuckin’ skulls to the yard with his rib-rattling, Anaal Nathrakhian double kick work, which often serves as a tempodic counterpoint to Evan’s wall of sound bass and guitar destruction (“We Shall Be Devoured by the Offspring of Our Own Flesh”). Topping off this sundae of fuck-off-fun-day decimation are the Mikael Åkerfeldtish vocals of Jokipii, whose roars and guttural growls bring an altogether beastlier edge to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ‘s throat work. Chestcrush will not make you feel good about yourself, nor will they have you looking hopefully into the future.

Speaking of hope, if not abandoned wholly before entering Chestcrush‘s world, it will be by the time “Every Single Word That Comes Out of Your Filthy Hole Is an Infectious Lie a Spreading Disease” invades your earholes. It is a punishing, anti-religious anthem full of chunky riffs, dissonant tremolos, Stone’s inhuman drumming, and Jokipii’s tortured growls and screams, prefaced by an ominous warning, ‘Until the last stone, from the last church, falls on the last priest.’ And as the screechy, staticky ending of “Hang Them! Torch Them!” gives way to the tolling bells of the sludgy behemoth and album closer, “As the Damned Writhe in Eternal Woe,” it is clear that Chestcrush hates us all. ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ has no high points, no zenith; it is a cavalcade of sorrow, a series of nadirs plumbing depths subterranean of Dante’s seventh circle.

From the very Hellraiser-esque cover art courtesy of Vladimir Chebakov to the forty-minute runtime, Chestcrush‘s ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ is infinitely more mature than its predecessor, Vthelygmia. I attribute this leap in maturation to two things. First, Chestcrush‘s songwriting has blossomed like a blackened rose, resulting in fully developed compositions that wend, wind, and weave within themselves, an ebb and flow of drama that casts a pall of abject hopelessness over the entire affair. Second, the addition of vocalist Topias Jokipii, whose beefier delivery and propensity to stay in his lower, more guttural register better fit Chestrcush‘s aural aesthetic. I have little in the way of criticism for ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ, but there was something that stood out, which is a brief screech of feedback that rears its head throughout the album, mainly as an exclamation point. It works when employed to create an intersong dynamic (“Every Single Word…”), but it becomes grating when tacked on the end of nearly every track, sometimes twice (“We Shall Be Devoured…”).

Chestcrush has penned a dirge celebrating the death of humanity and is the human embodiment of existential hate. You’ll not be blasting ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ poolside this summer, cracking beers and seltzers with your buddies and their wives, crisping flesh in the sun. Chestcrush is of darkness, despair, and destitution, and that is where ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ will take you. I have committed several hours to ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ in preparation for this review, and this time has left me spent, my jaw firmly wired shut, soul removed. I think I need to go and listen to some Fellowship now.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320kbps mp3
Label: Self-Released
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: April 4, 2025

#2025 #35 #AnaalNathrakh #Apr25 #BlackMetal #Chestcrush #DeathMetal #Immolation #Nails #NapalmDeath #Review #Reviews #ScottishMetal #Sludge #ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ

Unbounded Terror – Something Is Rotten in Humanity Review

By Mark Z.

Unlike other major European countries, Spain has never been much of a hotbed for death metal, presumably because they’ve been too busy perfecting their paella (holy shit is that stuff good). That hasn’t stopped Spanish death metal bands from trying to make their mark, however, and possibly the first to make such an attempt was Unbounded Terror. Led by guitarist Vicente Payá, the group initially only managed to release one album, 1992’s Nest of Affliction, before going kaput. Vincente went on to be more prolific with his doom/death band Golgotha before eventually resurrecting Unbounded Terror for 2020’s Faith in Chaos. That album turned out to be a nice little pre-COVID surprise, deviating from Nest of Affliction’s Obituary-gone-atmospheric style in favor of something simpler, catchier, and better produced. The follow-up, 2022’s Echoes of Despair, was another enjoyable release that showed Golgotha’s more melodic tendencies bleeding into the Unbounded Terror formula, an influence that wasn’t entirely surprising given that the two groups also share bassist/vocalist Andrew Spinosa. Now, Vicente has somehow found time between all the fucking projects he’s involved with (including Holycide, Sons of Cult, and a bunch of other stuff I’ve never heard of) to unleash a fourth Unbounded Terror album, Something Is Rotten in Humanity. That title seems more true with each passing day. But what of the music within?

A lot of death metal released today can be readily defined by which old school band it mainly sounds like (usually Incantation, Autopsy, or Entombed/Dismember). In the case of Something Is Rotten, that band is Monstrosity. Like those Floridians, this album offers death metal that almost no fan of the genre would take issue with. The tempos are fast, but not too fast. The vocals are gurgly, but not stupidly so. The production is balanced and polished, but not to the point that it makes things feel sterile. And the riffs? They’re fine, too.

Initially, the approach works. “Fear of Dying” opens the record like a big greasy fist to the face, with meaty chugging riffs that give way to groaning tremolos before a nice melodic lick bursts in partway through. The Monstrosity comparison is especially apt with this track, but even those looking for a more measured version of Cannibal Corpse are likely to find enjoyment here (and elsewhere, for that matter). “Destiny of Evil” quickly mixes things up with blast beats, gyrating tremolos, a winding solo, and even some raspier vocals, while “Demons in Your Mind” works well enough by using a peppy, mid-paced beat to propel a tightly wound, pig-fart verse riff.

Sadly, it soon becomes apparent that “Demons” seems to have served as the template for most of the six tracks that follow. Other than its cleanly picked opening, “Reviving” sounds far too similar to “Demons,” and it took me a couple of listens to realize that the pause between “Reviving” and “Inside Death” was a transition between songs and not a false ending to the former track. Later songs like “Divine Virtue” and “Believing Again” also have a similar feel to “Demons” but are somehow even less compelling, causing the album’s 32-minute runtime to drag more than it should. Ironically, “The Disappointment” is actually one of the strongest cuts in the album’s second half, with a cruising, groovy swagger that its neighboring tracks lack. The instrumental closer “The Evil Cause” is another standout, as its crunchy and confident main riff at least offers something different. As another plus, the solos of lead guitarist Ancor Ramírez (Holycide) are fantastic throughout, with a rich sense of melody and a glorious feel that’s often lacking in death metal leads.

Overall, Something Is Rotten is a perfectly competent death metal record. It falls short, however, by not being anything else. Other than a few good songs and some great guitar solos, everything here is serviceable but not particularly notable, which is especially disappointing given how many standout ideas could be found on the two prior albums. Ultimately, it’s not bad, it’s not great, but at least it offers a nice break from masturbating to the thought of the next COVID variant wiping out me and the eight billion other naked apes that have infested this planet like a black mold. Sometimes, that’s all we can ask for.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: v0 mp3
Label: Xtreem Music | Bandcamp
Websites: unboundedterror.com | facebook.com/unboundedterror
Releases Worldwide: April 1st, 2025

#25 #2025 #Apr25 #CannibalCorpse #DeathMetal #Golgotha #Holycide #Monstrosity #Obituary #Review #Reviews #SomethingIsRottenInHumanity #SpanishMetal #UnboundedTerror #XtreemMusic

Unbounded Terror – Something Is Rotten in Humanity Review

By Mark Z.

Unlike other major European countries, Spain has never been much of a hotbed for death metal, presumably because they’ve been too busy perfecting their paella (holy shit is that stuff good). That hasn’t stopped Spanish death metal bands from trying to make their mark, however, and possibly the first to make such an attempt was Unbounded Terror. Led by guitarist Vicente Payá, the group initially only managed to release one album, 1992’s Nest of Affliction, before going kaput. Vincente went on to be more prolific with his doom/death band Golgotha before eventually resurrecting Unbounded Terror for 2020’s Faith in Chaos. That album turned out to be a nice little pre-COVID surprise, deviating from Nest of Affliction’s Obituary-gone-atmospheric style in favor of something simpler, catchier, and better produced. The follow-up, 2022’s Echoes of Despair, was another enjoyable release that showed Golgotha’s more melodic tendencies bleeding into the Unbounded Terror formula, an influence that wasn’t entirely surprising given that the two groups also share bassist/vocalist Andrew Spinosa. Now, Vicente has somehow found time between all the fucking projects he’s involved with (including Holycide, Sons of Cult, and a bunch of other stuff I’ve never heard of) to unleash a fourth Unbounded Terror album, Something Is Rotten in Humanity. That title seems more true with each passing day. But what of the music within?

A lot of death metal released today can be readily defined by which old school band it mainly sounds like (usually Incantation, Autopsy, or Entombed/Dismember). In the case of Something Is Rotten, that band is Monstrosity. Like those Floridians, this album offers death metal that almost no fan of the genre would take issue with. The tempos are fast, but not too fast. The vocals are gurgly, but not stupidly so. The production is balanced and polished, but not to the point that it makes things feel sterile. And the riffs? They’re fine, too.

Initially, the approach works. “Fear of Dying” opens the record like a big greasy fist to the face, with meaty chugging riffs that give way to groaning tremolos before a nice melodic lick bursts in partway through. The Monstrosity comparison is especially apt with this track, but even those looking for a more measured version of Cannibal Corpse are likely to find enjoyment here (and elsewhere, for that matter). “Destiny of Evil” quickly mixes things up with blast beats, gyrating tremolos, a winding solo, and even some raspier vocals, while “Demons in Your Mind” works well enough by using a peppy, mid-paced beat to propel a tightly wound, pig-fart verse riff.

Sadly, it soon becomes apparent that “Demons” seems to have served as the template for most of the six tracks that follow. Other than its cleanly picked opening, “Reviving” sounds far too similar to “Demons,” and it took me a couple of listens to realize that the pause between “Reviving” and “Inside Death” was a transition between songs and not a false ending to the former track. Later songs like “Divine Virtue” and “Believing Again” also have a similar feel to “Demons” but are somehow even less compelling, causing the album’s 32-minute runtime to drag more than it should. Ironically, “The Disappointment” is actually one of the strongest cuts in the album’s second half, with a cruising, groovy swagger that its neighboring tracks lack. The instrumental closer “The Evil Cause” is another standout, as its crunchy and confident main riff at least offers something different. As another plus, the solos of lead guitarist Ancor Ramírez (Holycide) are fantastic throughout, with a rich sense of melody and a glorious feel that’s often lacking in death metal leads.

Overall, Something Is Rotten is a perfectly competent death metal record. It falls short, however, by not being anything else. Other than a few good songs and some great guitar solos, everything here is serviceable but not particularly notable, which is especially disappointing given how many standout ideas could be found on the two prior albums. Ultimately, it’s not bad, it’s not great, but at least it offers a nice break from masturbating to the thought of the next COVID variant wiping out me and the eight billion other naked apes that have infested this planet like a black mold. Sometimes, that’s all we can ask for.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: v0 mp3
Label: Xtreem Music | Bandcamp
Websites: unboundedterror.com | facebook.com/unboundedterror
Releases Worldwide: April 1st, 2025

#25 #2025 #Apr25 #CannibalCorpse #DeathMetal #Golgotha #Holycide #Monstrosity #Obituary #Review #Reviews #SomethingIsRottenInHumanity #SpanishMetal #UnboundedTerror #XtreemMusic

Unbounded Terror – Something Is Rotten in Humanity Review

By Mark Z.

Unlike other major European countries, Spain has never been much of a hotbed for death metal, presumably because they’ve been too busy perfecting their paella (holy shit is that stuff good). That hasn’t stopped Spanish death metal bands from trying to make their mark, however, and possibly the first to make such an attempt was Unbounded Terror. Led by guitarist Vicente Payá, the group initially only managed to release one album, 1992’s Nest of Affliction, before going kaput. Vincente went on to be more prolific with his doom/death band Golgotha before eventually resurrecting Unbounded Terror for 2020’s Faith in Chaos. That album turned out to be a nice little pre-COVID surprise, deviating from Nest of Affliction’s Obituary-gone-atmospheric style in favor of something simpler, catchier, and better produced. The follow-up, 2022’s Echoes of Despair, was another enjoyable release that showed Golgotha’s more melodic tendencies bleeding into the Unbounded Terror formula, an influence that wasn’t entirely surprising given that the two groups also share bassist/vocalist Andrew Spinosa. Now, Vicente has somehow found time between all the fucking projects he’s involved with (including Holycide, Sons of Cult, and a bunch of other stuff I’ve never heard of) to unleash a fourth Unbounded Terror album, Something Is Rotten in Humanity. That title seems more true with each passing day. But what of the music within?

A lot of death metal released today can be readily defined by which old school band it mainly sounds like (usually Incantation, Autopsy, or Entombed/Dismember). In the case of Something Is Rotten, that band is Monstrosity. Like those Floridians, this album offers death metal that almost no fan of the genre would take issue with. The tempos are fast, but not too fast. The vocals are gurgly, but not stupidly so. The production is balanced and polished, but not to the point that it makes things feel sterile. And the riffs? They’re fine, too.

Initially, the approach works. “Fear of Dying” opens the record like a big greasy fist to the face, with meaty chugging riffs that give way to groaning tremolos before a nice melodic lick bursts in partway through. The Monstrosity comparison is especially apt with this track, but even those looking for a more measured version of Cannibal Corpse are likely to find enjoyment here (and elsewhere, for that matter). “Destiny of Evil” quickly mixes things up with blast beats, gyrating tremolos, a winding solo, and even some raspier vocals, while “Demons in Your Mind” works well enough by using a peppy, mid-paced beat to propel a tightly wound, pig-fart verse riff.

Sadly, it soon becomes apparent that “Demons” seems to have served as the template for most of the six tracks that follow. Other than its cleanly picked opening, “Reviving” sounds far too similar to “Demons,” and it took me a couple of listens to realize that the pause between “Reviving” and “Inside Death” was a transition between songs and not a false ending to the former track. Later songs like “Divine Virtue” and “Believing Again” also have a similar feel to “Demons” but are somehow even less compelling, causing the album’s 32-minute runtime to drag more than it should. Ironically, “The Disappointment” is actually one of the strongest cuts in the album’s second half, with a cruising, groovy swagger that its neighboring tracks lack. The instrumental closer “The Evil Cause” is another standout, as its crunchy and confident main riff at least offers something different. As another plus, the solos of lead guitarist Ancor Ramírez (Holycide) are fantastic throughout, with a rich sense of melody and a glorious feel that’s often lacking in death metal leads.

Overall, Something Is Rotten is a perfectly competent death metal record. It falls short, however, by not being anything else. Other than a few good songs and some great guitar solos, everything here is serviceable but not particularly notable, which is especially disappointing given how many standout ideas could be found on the two prior albums. Ultimately, it’s not bad, it’s not great, but at least it offers a nice break from masturbating to the thought of the next COVID variant wiping out me and the eight billion other naked apes that have infested this planet like a black mold. Sometimes, that’s all we can ask for.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: v0 mp3
Label: Xtreem Music | Bandcamp
Websites: unboundedterror.com | facebook.com/unboundedterror
Releases Worldwide: April 1st, 2025

#25 #2025 #Apr25 #CannibalCorpse #DeathMetal #Golgotha #Holycide #Monstrosity #Obituary #Review #Reviews #SomethingIsRottenInHumanity #SpanishMetal #UnboundedTerror #XtreemMusic

Unbounded Terror – Something Is Rotten in Humanity Review

By Mark Z.

Unlike other major European countries, Spain has never been much of a hotbed for death metal, presumably because they’ve been too busy perfecting their paella (holy shit is that stuff good). That hasn’t stopped Spanish death metal bands from trying to make their mark, however, and possibly the first to make such an attempt was Unbounded Terror. Led by guitarist Vicente Payá, the group initially only managed to release one album, 1992’s Nest of Affliction, before going kaput. Vincente went on to be more prolific with his doom/death band Golgotha before eventually resurrecting Unbounded Terror for 2020’s Faith in Chaos. That album turned out to be a nice little pre-COVID surprise, deviating from Nest of Affliction’s Obituary-gone-atmospheric style in favor of something simpler, catchier, and better produced. The follow-up, 2022’s Echoes of Despair, was another enjoyable release that showed Golgotha’s more melodic tendencies bleeding into the Unbounded Terror formula, an influence that wasn’t entirely surprising given that the two groups also share bassist/vocalist Andrew Spinosa. Now, Vicente has somehow found time between all the fucking projects he’s involved with (including Holycide, Sons of Cult, and a bunch of other stuff I’ve never heard of) to unleash a fourth Unbounded Terror album, Something Is Rotten in Humanity. That title seems more true with each passing day. But what of the music within?

A lot of death metal released today can be readily defined by which old school band it mainly sounds like (usually Incantation, Autopsy, or Entombed/Dismember). In the case of Something Is Rotten, that band is Monstrosity. Like those Floridians, this album offers death metal that almost no fan of the genre would take issue with. The tempos are fast, but not too fast. The vocals are gurgly, but not stupidly so. The production is balanced and polished, but not to the point that it makes things feel sterile. And the riffs? They’re fine, too.

Initially, the approach works. “Fear of Dying” opens the record like a big greasy fist to the face, with meaty chugging riffs that give way to groaning tremolos before a nice melodic lick bursts in partway through. The Monstrosity comparison is especially apt with this track, but even those looking for a more measured version of Cannibal Corpse are likely to find enjoyment here (and elsewhere, for that matter). “Destiny of Evil” quickly mixes things up with blast beats, gyrating tremolos, a winding solo, and even some raspier vocals, while “Demons in Your Mind” works well enough by using a peppy, mid-paced beat to propel a tightly wound, pig-fart verse riff.

Sadly, it soon becomes apparent that “Demons” seems to have served as the template for most of the six tracks that follow. Other than its cleanly picked opening, “Reviving” sounds far too similar to “Demons,” and it took me a couple of listens to realize that the pause between “Reviving” and “Inside Death” was a transition between songs and not a false ending to the former track. Later songs like “Divine Virtue” and “Believing Again” also have a similar feel to “Demons” but are somehow even less compelling, causing the album’s 32-minute runtime to drag more than it should. Ironically, “The Disappointment” is actually one of the strongest cuts in the album’s second half, with a cruising, groovy swagger that its neighboring tracks lack. The instrumental closer “The Evil Cause” is another standout, as its crunchy and confident main riff at least offers something different. As another plus, the solos of lead guitarist Ancor Ramírez (Holycide) are fantastic throughout, with a rich sense of melody and a glorious feel that’s often lacking in death metal leads.

Overall, Something Is Rotten is a perfectly competent death metal record. It falls short, however, by not being anything else. Other than a few good songs and some great guitar solos, everything here is serviceable but not particularly notable, which is especially disappointing given how many standout ideas could be found on the two prior albums. Ultimately, it’s not bad, it’s not great, but at least it offers a nice break from masturbating to the thought of the next COVID variant wiping out me and the eight billion other naked apes that have infested this planet like a black mold. Sometimes, that’s all we can ask for.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: v0 mp3
Label: Xtreem Music | Bandcamp
Websites: unboundedterror.com | facebook.com/unboundedterror
Releases Worldwide: April 1st, 2025

#25 #2025 #Apr25 #CannibalCorpse #DeathMetal #Golgotha #Holycide #Monstrosity #Obituary #Review #Reviews #SomethingIsRottenInHumanity #SpanishMetal #UnboundedTerror #XtreemMusic