I had a passing affiliation for this Swedish act with the bands “Into Eternity” album in 1993 but the follow up and third albums escaped me for some reason, especially as the debut was a fine display of death metal that sat outside the normal Swedeath scene. “Counting Our Scars” also failed to hit my radar in 2010 which saw the band return to the scene after 14 years and was a fine album, bristling with incendiary riffs that owed more to the US death metal scene than that of their homeland. It has taken seven years for the new album to arrive as the band has adjusted their sound somewhat towards the Swedeath style but straddling both the US style with guttural deathly manifestations.

Opening the album is “Silent Rapture” a track that rockets into life with a scathing and wrathful riff balanced by a frenetic drum assault that makes the song seem urgent and unrelenting. “Spineless Kingdom” has an acerbic riff that bores into your head, linked by a grisly vocal performance that is decipherable and expertly delivered, enabling the phonetics of the lyrics to stand out for the most part. That urgency continues with the title track, a stabbing and gruesome song that lightens sporadically to unveil riff breaks as the song adopts a slower more purposeful approach but preserving the dense and rancorous riffing.

The longer “Beneath The Bleeding Sky” has a sombre but brutal riff to open it, creating an almost blackened feel to the song before it shifts into full deathly poise with a pummelling onslaught. “Slither” is three minutes of bedlam, as the song switches pace fluidly with a cracking riff overall but punctuated by riffing segues, something that this album does extremely well. My superlatives may indicate that this album is unremitting and for the most part it is, but it also delves into moody climes as on “Divine Blindness” with its ghostly and haunting intro piece that possesses a macabre aura before the track blasts into life. “Breathing The Ashes” is a favourite for me on this release due to its tuneful power that thrusts the song forward on a bed of barraging drums. Closing the release is “Our Departure”, a melodic track spanning the six minute barrier which allows the song to morph through various tempo changes spliced together with a myriad of riffs and hooks especially when the song abruptly slows for a brooding riff with doom death qualities, as that ethos of sombreness closes the release superbly.

(8.5/10 Martin Harris)

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Desultory/50447918404

https://pulverised.bandcamp.com/album/through-aching-aeons