FLAVOUR of the month seems to be technical death metal with the likes of Blood Incantation and Tomb Mold making waves with great albums. There are also a number of outfits such as Slimelord and Cryptworm that are taking brutal death to new extremes with their latest releases.
Ploughing a trusted furrow though is Pyre, a Russian quartet formed in 2011. These guys peddle old school death metal (OSDM) that pays plenty for tribute to the sounds of Autopsy with the riffs bludgeoning listeners in slow motion. But the band also know when to speed things up and there is plenty of chainsaw guitar action to get those heads whirring and hair flailing.
But progress has been slow with Where Obscurity Sways being only the band’s third full-length release following the 2014 debut Human Hecatomb and Chained to Ossuaries in 2020. However, it is among the highly anticipated albums in the metal underground and its old school credentials really shine through the tracks.
There is no pretensions about breaking the mould or making any grand artistic statement beyond producing head crushing metal, the good old fashioned way.
Is there a point of rehashing a tried and tested formula that was perfected in the early 90s? The proliferation of bands peddling this sound such as Malignant Altar and Defeated Sanity would suggest there is an audience for it. Furthermore, when its done with such aplomb, there is plenty to enjoy on this album.
The production is nice and thick allowing the drums to give the tunes a solid driving dynamic. The twin guitar attack is perfectly balanced in the mix and the solos are used sparingly but to great effect.
This long player is never going to be a classic. But for an afternnon’s woth of sheer headbanging fun, this does the job very nicely.
Vinyl copies were spotted at Varmt Stahl Record retailing at RM135. The album can also be enjoyed on all major streaming platforms.
