Twenty four long and somewhat spartan years after inception, Copenhagen’s Black/Death Metal juggernaut Strychnos have finally unleashed their debut album upon the world. Entitled ‘A Mother’s Curse’ and featuring eight gruelling odes of intensity and belligerence, and has been released on all formats by Dark Descent Records.

‘A Mother’s Curse’ isn’t an album for the faint hearted, and more than a lot of bands Strychnos wallow in a high intensity sound that never lets its guard down. Perpetually mired in murk and nocturnal atmospherics, this album crushes from the backline and creates from the front. The bass play and drumming display are both an unrelenting demonstration for force, punishing and dominant. From the vocals also is dealt another powerful ravaging onslaught, though here there are moments of flair that sees new elements such as cleaner, haunting chants come into play which serve to add a more melodic flavour to proceedings.

Where ‘A Mother’s Curse’ truly comes alive though, is through the guitar play. Whilst Strychnos are undoubtedly a brutal, all-encompassing mass of brutality, they also have a rich Heavy Metal influence which allows each song to breathe and be expansive when it comes to the guitar leads and rhythms, and as such the album flows and winds its way forward with a very listenable sound, whilst never letting the oppressive heaviness drop.

(7.5/10 Marksson)

https://www.facebook.com/strychnosterror

https://strychnos.bandcamp.com/track/horror-sacred-torture-divine