Zushakon are a two man black metal band from Singapore. Influenced themselves by the likes of Mayhem, Darkthrone and Bathory, they describe the music scene in their country as “safe and sterile”. I’d say that’s the country, not the music. Singapore is alive with extreme bands. It’s a small country so great credit is due to the people concerned that the extreme scene is so vibrant. There’s innovation too, from bands like Rudra, whose lead man Kathir is half of Zushakon, who follow up two eps with this self-titled album. In fact this album is the 2012 fusion of those two eps, “Chaosophist” (2007) and “World Ablaze” (2009). So underground are the band and these eps that I can’t imagine too many people outside of Singapore will be familiar with the material.

If you’re not familiar with the material, any black metal devotee will be familiar with the style. The music goes back to the past as if we were in Norway during the 1990s. If it were from that era, it would be impressive. But this is Singapore in 2012. Lengthening shadows, everlasting bleakness and shadowy drums and overall sound, this is the “noctambulant grimness” to which Darkthrone once referred. “Dawn of the Blackshirts” – hmm, it’s not clear if there’s a political motive here but knowing Kathir, I suspect not – is followed by the two parts of “Excuse All the Blood”. I heard croaking and despairing cries in a slow cook spitting pan. “Excuse All the Blood – Part 1” has dying and death written all over it. All the qualities of true black metal are there (and I recognise that some believe that true black metal only comes from Norway): dull, thudding drums, anarchic-sounding guitars and the ambiance of mental disturbance and breakdown. The sound quality is heritage / awful (delete as appropriate). Listening to this, it’s kind of laughable. “Excuse All the Blood – Part 1” ends as grimly as it started. Moving on to Part II, sub-titled “I love Transylvania”, the agony continues. This one is straight from the saw mill. It meanders on dirtily, very dirtily in fact. There’s no danger of over-production. This is music of the apocalypse. There mayhem with a small “m” going on out there. The punishment continues and it’s now all fired up as the thunderous black metal nettle is grasped. The violent and anarchic “Singawhore Revisited” – we revisit it before we visit it later, if you get my drift – should really be called “Chaos Requiem”, which is the title of the sinister instrumental piece which follows. Fury then meets the ambiance of hell. Always shady, “Vortex of Devoured Souls” gives us more old school blackened skies. There’s a deliberate lack of clarity. It borders on majesty, but it’s all too obscure for that, in every possible sense. The murderous screams of “Eye of the Destroyer” suggest that Lord Kathir, as he’s known here, is going to swallow us. These screams work in conjunction with the uncompromising drums and buzzing guitars. Fast and horrible, there’s an epic quality in the grim surroundings as the guitar signals a devilish lift-off. “The Three Dark Veils” is another grim black metal bash. The beseechings are pure Mayhem – somewhere between the early work and “Wolf’s Lair Abyss”, I’d say. All that is left is a quick and nasty blast of evil under the home-made title of “Singawhore”.

This album captures the spirit of an old school black metal album. I’m not sure what it is trying to prove, however. Why does Singapore need to pay homage to Norway? Or is it an exercise in proving that Singapore can “do” black metal? If this is the case, then rather than harking back, I’d have thought the addition of nasty storms and mists would add local flavour and helped to transform the musical image of Singapore from a work-obsessed, sterile paradise to a malevolent and fog-bound hell. Who knows? In spite of perhaps not getting the point of this derivative and apparently over-dependent album, I have to say that I still quite liked it.

(5.5/10 Andrew Doherty)

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