Sepulchral Curse : "Crimson Moon Evocations"

Normally when I read the term blackened death metaL my interest is seldom peaked as it rarely blends the two well. This band from Finland has perfected it on their third album. They are ripping fast at times but have the sense to slow down and groove. The more sonic dissonance associated with black metal can be heard in their chords, but they are also dark as fuck so that is a vibe I am about. They march into "House of the Black Moon" They ebb back and forth coming out of a faster angry part with more melodic death metal chugs. Their riffs have a catchy melodic knack to them amid the stormy heaviness. The vocals anchor things in death metal with their low gurgled growl. Sometimes it reaches up into a more anguished accent of a scream but the main vocal is growled. 

It's interesting how they blend an almost Swedish flare for melodic death metal into their sound but it is balanced out by the more brutal pound of the hammering drums. This can be heard in "The Locust Scar". Midway in there is a ripper of a riff that kicks the point home. It also contrasts the moments of blasting to come. I know I lament blast beats, but they are a tool and it is all in the context of how they are used if I am going to be sold on them. These guys showed me in the first two songs they had a wider range so the brief excursions into them do not phase me. There is a more creeping shadow that looms over "Beneath the Dismal Tides". I am not sure what any of these songs are about as the gurgle of the vocals does not articulate the lyrics, but they seem to reflect the titles in the tone of the guitars. There is a more in-your-face assault here that is not a deal breaker but I think they could have used more nuance. 

I can hear hints of Slayer influence in how some of the chord progressions ring out on songs like "Empress of the Dead". When the song kicks in they hammer you with a wall of guitars hacking at your ears. It's a very dense sound. There is impressive guitar playing on "The Currents of Chaos" but it tends to circle the same sonic themes we have already heard on this album. There is a more majestic march to the last song. It finds the guitarist playing to their strengths as a band without falling into a formula. I will give this album a 9, and see how it grows on me, a great stab at death metal. It's dark and has stellar guitar work

pst33