Omenfilth blends a couple of seemingly disparate black metal sounds into a surprisingly cohesive new sound. On the one hand, there are influences from the early South American scene from when thrash and death metal were first crossing over into black metal. It is the raw, aggressive warfare sound of groups like Sarcófago and Bestial Devastation-era Sepultura. This influence is clear from the fact that Omenfilth covers Vulcano's "Bloody Vengeance". And then there is the Hellenic black metal sound from Greece. This is a far more atmospheric, haunting sound calling to mind groups like Kawir, Varathron and Rotting Christ. Omenfilth combines these two influences into something new and interesting. The result is an album that can be bestial and primal one second and ethereal and atmospheric the next.
There are a couple of complaints I have about the album. First off, the production is not great. That is not really shocking, particularly in light of the South American influences, but the album is sometimes difficult to listen to. Secondly, there are two live tracks tacked onto the end of the album that seem very much out of place. For awhile, I thought this was some kind of compilation release. Adding live tracks to a full-length at the end does not add anything to the release except to make it longer and this album does seem very long as a result. The complaints are minor, but they do make this a somewhat difficult listen.
This one has been growing on me since I first heard it. At first, I was turned off by the production, but as I have listened to it more and more I have been very impressed by it. It is not quite what I thought it would be, but there is quite a bit to discover with time.
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