Death is June- Nunslaughter : "Satanic Chaos Legions"

This American band is a staple of the extreme metal scene; they are an aggressive yet dynamic blend of black metal and death metal. The vocal raps are really the only black metal element. As far as the satanic elements, they are pretty much just lyrical. I am not sensing they are darker than any other death metal band of this type, with Deicide and Archgoat being the unholy standards here. A song like "Jesus Fucking Dies" is fun, but on the thrash side of death metal. There is some tremolo-picked guitar in places that blur the lines a little here and there. They are very good at placing the vocals in the right places for maximum effect, as they are spit out as an accent to the faster guitar flowing under what they do.

"Christian Ruse" has more of a groove to its chug, though the vocals are not as memorable in their marginally lower snarl. They do throw in a cool moshy riff for a few measures, but it is not allowed to flourish long enough to get a pit going. You can hear more Slayer influence on this one. The first really blasty moment comes on "Die Your Own Death," which is balanced out by their more thrashing side. There is a more punk feel to "Rotten Messiah" that really lies in the drumming and the loose song structure.

The bass sound, being very prominent in the mix, creates a heavier sound than most bands of this kind. The deliberate nature of "Peukarist" gives the vocals more purpose and makes this one of the album's best songs so far. "In the Flames of Inferno" raced along a more predictable course. A song like "Heavenless" feels darker, which gets the message across more effectively. Though their frontman, Don of the Dead claims that they view Satan as just a philosophical symbol of rebellion, that being actually theistic Satanists, giving them more of a Laveyean stance if they are even into that much. They do branch out enough to delve into the Lucifer mythos on "Lucifer the Light' which is a pretty effective song. 

"Cathedral of Stench" hammers at you with a more Morbid Angel-like feel. Then they go full speed thrashing with the feral attack of "Listen to the Lies". They also keep things to a raging one-minute time limit on "Infernal Reign." They end the album with another minute and a half blast of speed with "Spear of Satan". I have heard grindcore bands use this time more effectively than just thrashing at you with their foot on the gas. I will give this album an 8.5; these guys stay true to who they are and do it with some songwriting sensibilities, even as rabidly furious as this album is. 

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