This debut album by Spain’s Apparition has already had a release on Headsplit records in July of 2023 on cassette and CD, as I suspect the German label has picked it up for a further CD issue and of course a vinyl edition. The short promotional information sheet was enough to give me an idea of what to expect from the album which resides completely in old school death metal. Previously the band released a self-titled demo with three tracks as two of those tunes have been rerecorded for the album, though quite why they didn’t include ‘Defiled Remains’ as well is slightly baffling but they must have their reasons.
The moment ‘A Haunting Reflection’ starts you know exactly what you’re going to get within the eight tracks on offer. The slow penetrating drum work is colossal in the mix as are the cavernous vocals which I really like here. The dense sound is formidable, clearly balanced on all fronts as it does have a suffocating aura too. I especially like the riff changes in the opener, something the band does a lot on the album to retain high impetus. ‘The Black Witch’ has a cool opening sequence with drum fill and snare rolling leading into the pungent deathly onslaught. Vocally I was thinking there is a similarity to Van Drunen just on the occasional lyric here and there as the song hurtles to a crescendo of half blasted mayhem.
‘Demonic Torment’ is the first tune that appeared on the demo and noticeably the production for the new version is denser and more oppressive as the song also boasts some excellent thrash elements, particularly on the piercing riff change that appears. Comparably there are similarities to Malevolent Creation, Protector, Incubus and very early Pestilence to name some older bands but if Skeletal Remains is more familiar then this is similar to them also. Much slower and saturated in a doom-death shroud is ‘Mummified In Sanctity’, the deep bass intro phase has a suspenseful start as the thrash riffing rears up again alongside the exceptional vocal display. I felt that the first four tracks built towards a sort of pinnacle midway through the album, each track climbing with ever increasing complexity before completely plummeting back with ‘Soldier Of Death’ with its complete Tom Araya style scream lead off as he did on the ‘Angel Of Death’ tune, which I’m sure is intentional due to their penchant for a thrash riff or two. The song is excellent however, a standout on the album with a pulverising double bass gallop that thrashers will lap up.
Crushingly slow is ‘Vanquished In Scorn’, the second tune from the demo, its penetrating violence is embellished with tons of drum work and disembowelling vocal tones. The use of double kick is something this album has in droves, to the point that they are used to create rhythms themselves with patterns afforded that are very enjoyable. ‘Quest For Blood’ is old school death, nothing else added, the song has an eerie riff with cymbal smashes paving the way for the brutalising demolition to follow and leads into the more thrash like ‘Apparition’ as the conclusion to the album. There are plenty of Slayer like hooks here, not ripped off just the style, as the eerie opening has a dissonant approach that creates dramatic flair before the inevitable double bass bombardment that ensues. I really do like the way this builds up, it layers on tension with each second before the grisly vocals take over. It is a brutal finale to the album but drenched in melody that both thrashers and death metal fans can appreciate and I’m sure this song will be killer when played live.
An excellent debut full length from Spain’s Apparition, not to be confused with the myriad of other bands also called Apparition in metal. It is a textbook demonstration of no frills death metal, a pure untainted onslaught of deathly riffage, guttural vocals and an earth crumbling rhythm section. Fine stuff indeed!
(8.5/10 Martin Harris)
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