It seems strange to think that there was a time, a decade or so ago, when a new death metal album almost certainly meant a clean, technical and somewhat soulless interpretation.
These days the genre has become a musically and culturally divided world, with the old-school late 80s/early 90s approach having a sizeable share of the fanbase. Switzerland’s Deathcult (who feature guitarist and vocalist Okoi Ketzer of Bölzer) are neck-deep in this classic archetypal approach; think early Death or Autopsy and a bit of classic Stockholm and you’ll have a good idea of what to expect.
Energetic yet ‘pleasantly’ morbid riffing, satisfyingly pounding percussion and depraved vocal work that blends the sort of growls and yelps associated with the genre with a touch of the zealot-like invocations we see in the occult black metal scene these days. There’s little to fault, though at the same time there are few that would call this a classic example of the style – it’s good stuff, but a bit more oomph and personality next time would lift Deathcult into more distinctive territories.
