Two bands, each with three tracks are presented on this split album and we are promised “Over 40 minutes of cosmic despair, madness and pain.” Sounds like a challenge as far as I am concerned and with void-dwelling cover art suggesting we are going to be thrust into a horrifying abyss of alien terror it is with some caution that play is pressed here. One thing is guaranteed, the description is no lie and although both bands are slightly differing in approach they are well matched at presenting a landscape of malaise and spectral depravity that is enough to have the listener’s bowels turning to rancid gravy and threatening to erupt in spectacular fashion. Too much info perhaps but it’s not like we were not forewarned.

First up are Dominion Of Suffering, formerly of Slovakia but according to some sources currently closeted in Zurich Switzerland. Active since 2018 the core trio consists of the somewhat grimly named Neptun, Quasar and evident Hellraiser fan Dr Channard and have a smattering of releases to their name including album ‘The Birth Of Hateful Existence’ from 2020. Eerie sounds emanate over a ghostly landscape before first number ‘The Way Of Destruction’ mercilessly batters in properly. Attention is drawn to the jackhammer and almost industrialised drumming tumult and ghoulish vocals. Horror is manifested from every pore and we are berated by the particularly dictatorial and authoritarian vocals which, bark snap, snarl, scream, groan in torment and project misery and hatefulness with utmost malignancy. Guitars spiral out from the deepest pits of hell and the clattering abrasiveness of the musicians is nothing short of calamitous. These fiends take their sweet suffering seriously and seem determined to tear souls apart as they plunge into ‘Descendant Of The Fallen Gods’ Although on the whole a seething bombast, underlying melody is present for those who can fathom it between the layers and here with a bit of a jaunty bounce it all revels in destruction. Nihilistic at every turn there’s no safety net as ‘The Illusion Of Life’s Worth’ is considered. Slithering tentacles embrace and strangulate and the hell-bound preacher contorts his parts with a sermon that would give Attila from Mayhem a run for his sanity. Add a disconcerting essence of dissonance to the pot and this is truly scary stuff which will linger in the memory long after its last foul breath has been exuded.

No escape yet as Phobonoid are hot on their heels. Italian Lord Phobos is the constructor of their cold and hostile universe and has since formation delivered a couple of albums, last ‘La Caduta di Phobos’ on Avantgarde Music back in 2019. Here we have a bit more in the way of atmosphere due to spatial sounding keyboards which take us to the outer limits of an empty galaxy at the opening of two-part track ‘Cosmonauta Eterno.’ Guitars limber up, vocals croak and snarl behind them and motion expands with the drums and bass giving the recording a neat, dense sound. Doomy blackness and rumbling dread are the essence here rather than the brute force of its predecessor and melody is much more prevalent as we drift through the frigid cosmos. Considering the Italian locale of the musician it’s the sort of project one would probably expect to be on I, Voidhanger records and nestled in with their various cosmic explorers. This is intelligent and compelling stuff and although filling the 20-minutes of recording time at disposal, leaves you hungering for more. Those spacey synths which are elevated by a tapping drum and thick bass section on the second part of the track take you into an alien universe, one where you feel that everything you encounter is going to be inhospitable. Fans of 80’s synth horror alien encounter films should be in their element here and although not as obvious a pant-soiler or as harrowing as Dominion Of Suffering, Phobonoid are still more than capable of chilling the bones.

With both acts presenting a potent entry to forbidden worlds, this is a split well worthy of navigation.

(8/10 Pete Woods)

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100041438421607

https://www.facebook.com/phobonoid

https://godzovwarproductions.bandcamp.com/album/dominion-of-suffering-phobonoid