2025 had its share of Brutal Death Metal. And it went something like this: The horrors of Castrator led to Insatiable Violence, which again insinuated the Lust of Decay and finally ended in Depravity. The name of a band from down under that nicely finished this year of mixed reviews. Plus an astonishing number of rants to round things up some.
And while Extreme Metal had more difficulty making it over the threshold over here this year, this is still a pretty astonishing crop of metal atrocities. The grouchy old geezers over at the RMR Review desk took at least some pity for the hapless acolytes of metal furor and abject technicalities.
But Depravity sent us one of their rants in return. And that at a level of excellence the RMR crew could not really ignore. Bestial Possession1 kinda tries to conquer you by storm straight off the bat. And they mean business. Eviscerating excursions into territories where Brutal Death Metal glows darkest will greet you at the start and will never leave you throughout the thankfully short playtime. There will be no reprieve, no moment to take a breather and enjoy a sunray or two. These dark stairs led you straight down to Depravity‘s very own Gehenna, and you stay there for the duration. Even if the band often tries to paint their wares in a Swedeath glow. To curry favor with the more mainstream crowd, I guess.
But what will really make you stay with the record is this band’s stellar craftsmanship. The metal comes straight from the usual putrid sump, but the outstanding technical prowess of this band took our breath away. In other words, Bestial Possession sports many traits of Technical Death Metal as you steamroll through its tracklist. And it’s not only the trademark throaty Death Metal on offer. The band also managed to inject enough melodics into the general mayhem to keep matters neatly glued to each other.
The riffing is wild and insanely intense, but still somewhat dime-a-dozen. But the wild excursion to Shredding Central, the acid-laced solos, and the savagely tasty bridges will keep your ears in overdrive. And did I mention it? The drummer’s stellar job truly pulls this ship along with some of the wildest combinations of 2025. Put differently, it is that meaty sound of the throaty twang of the drums that will keep you awake and moving along. The throbbing bass kinda rounds things up together with the merciless growls, rasps, and occasional – well – sickly clears.
But there’s more. One of the main pillars of success on Bestial Possession is the surgical precision this band delivers. The songwriting skills, the arrangement, and lastly, the execution are almost otherworldly. However, all of that smooth news is somewhat smothered by the fact that the band again tried to win the loudness war. And that ain’t a trait we often encounter these days anymore.
Ultimately, Bestial Possession is living proof that Death Metal in its most brutal form can be entertaining. And this is a compliment directly from RMR Himself, by the way. You see, most BDM bands out there overdo it with brutality, abject gurgling, and attempts to scare you into acceptance by a sheer overdose of ferocity and an almost anal fetishism to whatever atrocity comes to mind.2 Yet Depravity here has just found the right balance between abject putrescence and an artful projection of what tech death usually has in store for the avid metalhead.
In other words, Depravity have turned the infamous Neanderthal Metal into an art form. One that sounded appealing even to this crew. Bestial Possession fully enjoyed. Exceptions indeed confirm the rule, don’t they?
Record Rating: 7/10 | Label: Transcending Obscurity | Web: Official Band Site
Release Date: 21 November 2025
- Virulent is thy name. The possessed ones salute you. -Ed.-↩
- I am looking straight at you, Dying Fetus. -Ed.-↩