Following up on their 2020 album “The Great Demise” this Swedish band has branched out from its core death and back metal mix to incorporate keyboards and in doing so enhance the scope and drama of their offering. Quoted influences are Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth and Children of Bodom but that’s just a yardstick as this band has enough experience and vision to define their own direction.

Fiery vocals, a wall of heavy sound, death metal melody and an orchestral surround – this is how the album sets out. “Coming Home”, the opening song, surprised me with a break and a toned down, progressive interlude, deviating away from the more familiar and expected heavy metal sound. “Psychogenic” continues the dramatic, melodic death metal style with a strong hint of symphony, a lavish guitar solo and epic pretensions. It’s a bit of a cliché perhaps but it does seem that these Scandinavians have a gene which enables them to create swirling pieces of darkness which are as smooth as silk. “Delusion” is a template of this – a pure, driving death metal song with perfect structure and melody, commercial in its sound and yet darkly orchestral. This text book song has an element of every melodic metal band you can think of. The message seems to be that darkness is comforting. The roaring melody continues with “A Storm Without a Wind”. Its start reminded me of Insomnium but it branches out with a choir, and a more emotive section reminiscent of the one on “Coming Home”. I’m still making my mind up on whether that works or not, but it does give variety before the song returns to epic scenes and a brief solo at the end. “Master Your Mind” is a mixture of styles, starting with a sample to set a suitably dark tone and being largely deep and down but at the same going off on a Bodomesque romp. Soaring keyboards are in evidence in the background of the blackly symphonic title song as the album now takes a darker turn. “Rebuilding” is a colourful romp, and bears some resemblance in style to that of Graveworm, I thought. It’s all become a rip-roaring blackened symphony, a mood which “Demon in Heaven” perpetuates. A nice solo and an ominous choir enhance the ever lively atmosphere. And that’s it barring a little acoustic outro.

I can only represent my own view and not that of the world, but I can see how “Mazzaroth” could be an album of the year candidate for some. It’s tight and songs like “Delusion” have an anthemic quality. The ingredients equate to a winning formula. Offset against this, I wasn’t so keen on the progressive part which appeared in a couple of songs, and the mixture of styles, while immaculately done, was a bit too generic for me. The album does stand out musically though, and is well worth a listen.

(7.5/10 Andrew Doherty)

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https://testimonyrecords.bandcamp.com/album/sodomisery-mazzaroth