Warlords of Hell

Beginning with a short introduction of traditional backward-masking (this is, after all, the Devil's music) and a swelling crescendo of monstrous, demonic voices, the album quickly throws itself forward into the breach with an explosion, sounds of swords clashing or being drawn from scabbards, and the scarring blitzkrieg of Thy Infernal's malevolent guitar playing, full speed ahead, in media res - like falling from the sky into the midst of a battle - and aimed like a razor sharp set of encrimsoned fangs at your jugular. Extolling, above all, not only the most chaotic, disruptive elements of blackened death, but being, in their own way, a sort of offering and shrine to the Dionysian forces of music - the unleashed capacity for rapturous, violent creativity - this group have come together to add a sorely-needed shot of unbridled energy into the muscular and often awkward arms of American metal.

Out of these seven apocryphal hymns to Armageddon, the first three - especially the second, 'Rotting in Hell', and the third, 'Wolfstorm' (all references to Angelcorpse aside) - are the most impressive, and are intelligently placed at the forefront, the front lines, in order to attack you from the start. 'Rotting in Hell' catches my appreciation from the very beginning because of its elegant, understated, powerfully epic intro riffing, swirling and marching like a suicidal death brigade, at the vanguard, descending a vast precipice to storm a city or fortress, throwing themselves in a blaze of glory into pyres of self-destruction. This main melody, here at the beginning, is what launches Thy Infernal immediately into the 'elite' of US black metal, if one wanted to use that term, as it combines the evocative power of early Norse tenebrous tremelo six and five-string play with a uniquely grim edge that just might be this band's trademark sound. I blush as I say this, but this melody just makes me close my eyes and clench my hands into fists - it truly takes my mind into another place and time. Also vastly imposing is the bizarre riffing on display in 'Wolfstorm', which sends striking, rapid hammer-ons and pull-offs into a blistering, trembling, lightspeed shower of sparks and glints of steel - managing to be both technically numbing and a high octane assault at the same time. Believe me, you just have to hear this.... and rather than trying to describe the music at length, I would just have you seek this out and let it circle like a vulture a few times. I don't think you will be disappointed.

It is very instructive to me, as a musician, how one or two highly evocative, stirring melodies, perfectly constructed and completely abstract in their power to affect one's sensibilities, can completely make or break an entire album. I think of Sarcophagus' second record, for example, where just one little acoustic guitar arpeggio, in the middle of the first song, makes the entire track (and the album as a whole) transcend the ranks of the ordinary. When one stumbles across or dreams of a unique, powerful, strangely-disturbing series of notes, it is best to incorporate it any way you can into a song. The most important thing is to let the inspired melody breathe and live, and leave all the consequences of song structure and sonic architecture to be damned.

So, to summarize, what we have here is a uniquely puissant outpouring of deep American darkness - pure and uncorrupted from the trenches, as it were - and an album that I believe will be quickly setting a strong standard for other US groups to live up to. Simply put, owning this album is like having the sound of the world ending in a convenient package you can carry around in your pocket. It is up to you how you unleash it. It may not be the 'best' black metal release from this land (I feel uncomfortable making claims such as this), but it is tremendously, overwhelmingly impressive, and I can't help but think it will be calling an enormous amount of deserved attention to this relatively unknown band... congratulations Moribund and Thy Infernal!

UA

Erebus Magazine
http://erebuszine.blogspot.com

Thy Infernal have quite the reputation among many underground circles and they have earned a slight bit of respect from me for their consistent musicianship as well. This being said, the band is hardly doing anything that interesting or unique. Thy Infernal are the classic "we're hill to slay Jesus" kind of blokes who seem convinced of their hatred and this carries the record from being another stale retread to actually sounding somewhat vibrant. You can't have originality all the time, and when you just want some good-ole' face stomping black metal...Thy Infernal might just stroke your hell's kitchen into a blaze. It's hard for me to admit, but this release is pleasing on a very base level that I can say little to justify on an artistic level.

The songs themselves range from skilled "blast-a-thons" to militant moments that provide a needed break from the hammering/unrelenting crash-beats. None of these songs will grab you and make you dance through the cemetary humming the riffs as a "Funeral Fog" would but it's good enough to not be listed as "bad". Sadly, the innovation factor is close to nil and this will only appeal to those who want more of the same that is currently dominating the black metal underground. Even I will dig this when I'm in the right mood, but I can hardly endorse it as a large artistic victory of any kind.

If you can't get enough blast-beats or common "black metal breakdown" movements I'd say put your filthy little paws on this. If you're looking for something a bit more interesting, forward thinking our unique you might want to start looking elsewhere as this CD provides little of the above.

One thumb up for the effort...but one will remain in the middle because the genre currently needs a lot more than this band is giving it. Put this under "black metal junk food". Tastes good, has no nutrients whatsover.