The Suffering Within

A morbid, 3-song tape from this QLD entity combining the upbeat tempos of traditional and the morose riffing of depressive Black Metal. The demo suffers from strobing volume due to tape saturation. I am told, the original recording was clearer but came out this way after being dubbed onto tape and it was decided to keep the resulting crusty sound.

The music is horrific, downcast Black Metal with snappy live drums and visible bass. There is some synth, low in the mix complementing the atmosphere very nicely. Something about this approach remind me of Shining and Silencer though the band is quite dissimilar from both and never as depressive as Shining. Perhaps the jazzy booming bass hovering in the background and the way the voluminous drums mark out the plodding rhythm will remind you of those two artists as well. There are some nice breaks with electric/acoustic/bass guitar interplay, highlighting the nice dynamics this artist employs in their creations. These suggest that the band is capable of more, but is holding back for now.

This is a solid tape; each track following a uniform compositional formula, although after it is all over one is left wishing for more. The band has changed their name to Paroxysmal Descent and continue onwards with their disturbing music.

Originally published in Procession of Black Doom zine #2