For the uninitiated, Todd Burdette has been at the heart of some incredible hardcore and punk bands such as His Hero Is Gone, Severed Head Of State and Tragedy, to name but a few. So when word got out that he had teamed up with Tim Call from Aldebaran and Mournful Congregation, anticipation was always going to be high.
The Living Ever Mourn doesn’t disappoint. Taking the epic Amebix-flavoured crust of HHIG and Tragedy, Nightfell blend it with the tarpit-thick classic death metal riffing of Bolt Thrower and Asphyx. Add in the fist-in-the-air/foot-on-the-prow melodic triumphalism of Amon Amarth or Primordial, and the occasional slow-mo deathly doom section that Tim Call has made his name with, and you’re there.
The heavily streamed track I Am Decay perfectly encapsulates this ride through the spectrum of extreme metal styles: post-crust black death doom, anyone? Or else you can definitely forget about pigeonholes. Want heavy? Want catchy? Want crushing, bass-heavy powerful production and huge slabs of riffing? Of course you bloody well do.
