Something called Mountains of Madness has gotta be good, right? We won’t know for certain until the review concludes, of course. But records boasting mini-Cthulhus on their album art with stories from cold plains must appear on our zine. H.P. Lovecraft is one of our favorite sources for horror stories after all.
And sure enough, Puteraeon here delve deep into the lore of primordial terrors that we cannot comprehend. And they do this with a real sturdy and pretty merciless brand of Swedish Death Metal unchanged by the eons spent on the cold wastes of Kadath. Let the Mountains of Madness drive you to bedlam and back.
Methinks also that this here record is seriously removed from the Rogga-man, even if we found a few similarities. And that’s a good thing. Swedeath is an overloaded genre and it will be a bitch to excel in here. They’re all kinda driving the same vein of Death Metal. Instead, the RMR crew smoked Dan Swanö1 making dangerous statements. Strange noises, such as this record being the best-ever Swedish Death Metal piece. That kind of thing.
But Swanö’s influence can indeed be felt throughout this record. Mountains of Madness moves way beyond the dime-a-dozen wares the Swedeath mainstream folks actually deliver. For many, it’s like some Lego game, you see. Wanna do a new Swedeath record? Take some bits that worked from your last piece, and start building your wall of sound. Rinse, repeat, keep going. But not so here on Puteraeon‘s turf.
The style is undeniable, true. But this band took it to the next level by instilling groove, limitless power, and – strangely – a sense of innovation. And with that groove comes a ton of riffs in 50 shades of raspy tones, followed by outstanding solos (The Nameless City, for instance). That, in itself, isn’t something to write home about, of course. However, the meaty and artfully built melodics that are progressing to fill this frigid void really take the cake. Indeed, you’ll find parts that are almost cinematic in structure as this whole chebang seemingly marches forth to the throne of Cthulhu in a majestic fashion. And more interestingly still, the band managed to throw a hurricane of different styles, moods, and flavors without overloading the mix. There may be some wall of sound at times, but it remains well constructed and firmly embedded in a relatively warm master.2
The RMR crew also appreciated the delicate injections of forlorn ambients, such as the haunting piano. These quiet moments in the bedlam the Great Old Ones throw at us throughout the crisp 40 minutes of airtime. Or take some forlorn screams that suddenly emerge seemingly from Kadath, that icy and cold plain. Last, but not least, the RMR crew rarely found a band so imbued in the Lovecraftian lore without going full-tilt pathetic. A feat the crew over at Puteraeon managed delicately and proficiently.
Ultimately though, Mountains of Madness turned into a fascinating record. The band managed to deliver living proof that Swedeath can actually be fun, too. The riffing patterns, the gritty growls, and the merciless drumming are all typical Scandinavian fare. But Puteraeon broke them buzzy patterns up by injecting additional melodics and some groove where there usually are none without losing the overall spirit of this very specific sub-genre. It takes some mastery and true skill to turn that kind of dry matter into a juicy Extreme Metal experience. One that this crew returned to often and probably will continue to do so throughout 2025.
Record Rating: 7/10 | Label: Emanzipation Productions | Web: Official Band Site
Release Date: 30 May 2025