It doesn’t seem like three years since this Birmingham wrecking ball of a band graced my review lists but that’s what pandemics do for you I suppose. Time doesn’t just distort in one direction it gets bent out of shape in your memory in every direction.

Funny how this lot always seem to have me musing on metaphysics. Particularly as opening ‘Dirt And Ruin’ is already running with a high tempo drum battery and a pneumatic drill influenced riff before you can read the title. Yes this is raw, dirty black metal grinding down into the darkness with all the subtlety of old Hellhammer. Passages slow, a heavy crawl to catch its breath before lurching on again. Stall laid out, ears ringing.

‘Bestial Ritual’ is pretty much what is says. So more of the same, you ask? Yes of course but as on previous albums Arrogant Destruktor do indeed write distinct songs. This has almost a hint of melody in the guitar line, something that might even be a simple keyboard sound back there, and the kind of tempo changes to always keep your head engaged. Whereas ‘The Call Of The Dead’ despite having no let-up lifts the riff out of the murk and adds more of a cutting edge to the bludgeon.

‘The Brand’ assures me that I am indeed hearing keyboards way in the distance, and this one is a mid-paced collection of darkness. Despite more melody, the riff has that punk influence just creeping in a bit I think. And then the keyboards take over for the short instrumental ‘Mourning The Lost Symphonies’ which is an old school vibe, a little cosmic, a little dungeon and leads pretty much into the title track.

It a good production for their sound on the album; nothing too clean of course but sharp when needed and lends a good energy to the malevolence on display here. I particularly like how the mix with the keyboards had been handled and when they echo the riff or briefly rise above it adds a little more contrast without turning into full on Limbonic Art or something (nothing wrong with that mind, in its place.) The best thing is though that it manages that neat balance between faintly echoing old nineties black metal like Gehenna and an absolutely relentless more updated attack.

Now you have to bear in mind this album is pretty full on all the way through. Even the last original track ‘Disease And The Terminal Breath’, which is a moody affair with smoother riff by comparison to others, and an almost melancholy downturn to the melody, is hardly gentle. But the song-writing here makes every song distinct, every tempo change of interest so if you are in the mood for some unapologetic, raw black metal then it will seriously hit the spot.

Oh and the final track is a cover of Necromantia’s ‘Shaman’ which not only is very good indeed but also will give you a good point of reference for the rest of this album.

That ‘difficult’ third album? No such thing for this lot.

(8/10 Gizmo)

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