Sarcoptes do like it dreary – and brutal to a fine point. Already their rough-hewn EP Plague Hymns was a friggin’ scorcher and it landed them straight on the 2020 Top 3 year-end list for EPs.
And the band truly does like its themes, too. There’s no light or joy left in that dystopian and depressive end-of-world view of theirs. Grim topics such as disease, endless war, massacres, and catastrophes abound. That’s their daily rotten bread. All of that served with a mighty stew of gore and tribulation and an avalanche of energy to turn Anaal Nathrakh yellow1 with envy.
Whilst Plague Hymns was (expertly) pretentious in a way, Prayers to Oblivion may come across as mighty ambitious. With five tracks only, three out of which are way beyond the 12-minute mark, you’ve got to admire the band’s chutzpah. This better be good, or the quality whackos might want a word. And urgently.
But once Sarcoptes let loose with their high-octane, full-speed-ahead brand of Melodic Black Metal, this – thing had our full attention. The record greets ya with wild thrashy riffs roaring forth on an avalanche of howled shrieks and a relentless barrage of blast beats. And all of that lurches forward like the undead from hell, egged on by crazed keys that seem to emanate straight from Dracula’s empty castle. In other words, the metal truly matches the warlike theme.
But you won’t only get slammy unhinged metal only. Suddenly breaks will appear in this speed-laden morose soundscape and spew forth some malignant low-tempo tune that eerily adds to the menace. And that, just when you expect it least. Fancy an example? At around 10:48 of runtime, The Trenches will sound the bells of hell for ya. The perfect entry point for some pretty cool low-tempo grime that the crew here truly cherished.
But this is also when the first major issues start to appear. Writing epic songs requires a lot of skill and attention to detail. Else, you’ll risk losing the audience in a tepid sea of old tropes and weak-tea repetitions. And here, some of Prayers to Oblivion‘s penchant for noodling about the soundscape almost got on our bad side. Take Dead Silence, for instance. This one could be the driving song on this record. And all is there. Rough-hewn, tastily blackened fare, enough thrash to mash yer brains, and Garrett Garvey in full vocal fury. Boy, even the break to slow-motion at 7:0 or so is exceedingly well done. Some whiff of olde extremes complete with keys, followed by one of those rare tasty solos. But then, by the mark 8:40, the band descends into an endless loop of a riff that drones on to the bitter end.
In other words, the much shorter Tet or – again – Spanish Flu sported way more bite, razor-focused purpose, and a sturdy pace that somehow evaporated on the lengthier tracks. And it’s funny, I did not detect that flaw on La Moria Grandissima of Plague Hymns to that extent. I guess, this is because the EP favored a more traditional BM sound without too much speedy ferocity.
So, where will Prayers to Oblivion land us? The record indeed delivers a pretty hot serving of Extreme Metal. Razor-sharp ferocity, meaty metal riffs, and not one syllable of clear voice in earshot anywhere. All of that comes on an abundance of cinematically dramatic keys, and drum work ready to knock your skull back into your neck. The record truly is brutal, menacing, and – indeed – well-crafted at the same time. But those equally abundant noodly passages continually pulled the underlying snazzy quality down a notch or so. And that could have been avoided.
Just sayin’.
Record Rating: 6/10 | Label: Transcending Obscurity | Web: Facebook (band)
Release Date: 24 February 2023
- Or orange, judging by their latest piece.-↩