Paganus Doctrina: Omnipotense Aeternae Diabolus (2013)

I am not sure I have yet heard a metal band from Costa Rica.  That has changed with this release from Paganus Doctrina.  The band released a demo in the mid 1990's that garnered some attention and followed that up with a split before breaking up.  They re-formed in 2006, released another split and finally released this, their debut full-length album in 2013.  So here we are.

Apparently Central American metal is just as raw and filthy as South American metal.  I assumed this was a possibility.  The initial track is incredibly creepy and does a very good job of building a terrifying atmosphere, from the rain introduction to the tortured wailing and inhuman shrieking of vocalist Lord Demogorgon, it is a truly horrific-sounding track.  It is definitely one of the more impressively frightening tracks I have heard in some time.

After that, the band settles into an unholy concoction of the nastiest, grimiest forms of black, death, and thrash metal imaginable.  The reference points are obvious for anyone who knows the bestial South American scene.  Even though Costa Rica is farther north, Paganus Doctrina clearly fits into that sound.  The album does manage to hold up its horror movie vibe and continues to sound eerie throughout.  The absolutely insane vocals continue as well.

So yeah, this album rocks, seriously.  It captures the creepy aesthetic that good occult extreme metal is supposed to achieve.  It is dark and chaotic and downright frightening.  Not one to listen to while alone in the dark.