This comes with the usual no-nonsense description from the Godz ov War label: “Nasty evil black metal Poland”. No X Factor sob stories here. And we don’t want them either. A bit of research tells me that this is the band’s second album, and that the band members have links to older bands, among them Hell United and Eclypse.

If the description is no nonsense, then so is the music. Leaden heavy, the deepest, darkest, dingiest groove is dug out, unearthing all manner of horrors. The tempo changes between furious assault and a doom-like concoction but it’s all murderous. The crunching guitar sounds like it’s ready to strangle someone. All this happens to a backing wall of noise which sounds like a swarm of insects. There are vocals. They give the impression of coming from an echoing chasm, save an appeal at the end from the vocalist announcing himself as “hell you fear” and “overwhelming blackness”, before exhorting listeners to “fuck your deity”. “Malicious Holiness” follows and amounts to an evil march. The wall of blackened noise is everywhere, as Upon the Altar perform the musical equivalent of digging up dead bodies. Guitars growl and spew out contempt and black smoke. The drums remain aloof and powerful. The vocalist growls and spits out evil. What’s impressive is the variety of musical expression in this ode to annihilation.

“The trinket around Christians’ neck melts in the flame of hellfire …. mankind surrender to dark …. the time has come to fall and die” goes the message of “Annunciation”. Upon the Altar grind us down with the supporting music, which drags us through figurative barbed wire and offers no hope of any sort. Yet it is impressive in its imperious power. The ferocious juggernaut burns its way through the title song, exploding into further nihilistic and anti-religious fury before grinding itself down to the bone, sweep and musically enacting their words: “black sperm oozes into the womb of earth”. “Explosions, delusions, angel’s pollutions” sounds very poetic but here both words and music combine to be venomous. It all comes crashing down in every sense with “Prolegomenon”, which provides us with our final dose of weighty punishment.

It really doesn’t get blacker than this. Upon the Altar exercise masterly control over the evil atmosphere, setting up their pitch in the depths and spreading evil, violence and hatred without respite.

(8.5/10 Andrew Doherty)

https://www.facebook.com/uponthealtarofficial

https://godzovwarproductions.bandcamp.com/album/descendants-of-evil