FMA Reviews: Denouncement Pyre: Almighty Arcanum

Originally reviewed here.

Those who have been following me for awhile probably know that I am a big fan of the Australian extreme metal scene. You know the one, the bestial thrash/black/death mix that come to be referred to as the "war metal" scene. That scene had started to lose its lustre over the last several years but there are signs that there may be a revitalization at work lately. Groups like Denouncement Pyre, Vomitor, Black Jesus, and Mongrel's Cross have all emerged in a major way over the last few years. Though Denouncement Pyre and Vomitor have been around for quite awhile, Denouncement Pyre since 2003 and Vomitor since 1999, they have really gotten notice recently. These are likely the bands that are leading the Australian extreme metal scene for years to come.

If anything, this sophomore full-length from the Aussie crushers is an improvement over their debut release. This is mostly due to the improvement in the production quality. Their last album was murky, and while it sounded good for the type of chaotic metal that was on that disc, it is nice to hear that they have cleaned things up a little bit without going too far and sounding sterile. This is just about right where it should be for a raw black/death/thrash metal album.

The title track is a true barnburner, kicking things off with a thrash metal riff that would make even the members of Destroyer 666 stand up and take notice. Much of the rest of the album also goes for the dirty, hell-raising blackened thrash that D666 perfected on Cold Steel. That is one of my favorite albums of all time, so I am definitely intrigued by this release. There are some truly impressive moments on this album. The closing moments to "The Deceiver" had me tapping my foot and banging my head. But Denouncement Pyre also know how to slow things down to make the faster moments seem even faster. The interlude track "Drakon: All is One" is a perfect example. It is an instrumental track that acts as a bridge between two very fast songs but it builds atmosphere incredibly well at the same time.

Atmosphere is one thing that Denouncement Pyre excels at. Every track on this release has such a dark and evil vibe to it. It is something that is strived for on a lot of albums but few are able to make it connect as well as Denoucement Pyre. This is another place that the improvement in production values has really helped the band. Instead of sounding like a muddled mess, the atmospheric moments shine through cleanly and crisply.

Denouncement Pyre released a hell of a good debut album a few years ago, but they have topped it with this release. This is incredible.

2011 in Review: Best of 2010 I Did Not Hear Until 2011

For the first 2011 in Review post, I have listed five great albums from 2010 that I did not hear until 2011.

5. INQUISITION: OMINOUS DOCTRINES OF THE PERPETUAL MYSTICAL MACROCOSM
The album title and song titles are definitely a mouthful and Colombia's finest black metal band put out an album as monstrous as their vocabulary. With a sound similar to Norway's Immortal, Inquisition is easily one of the better pure black metal bands currently going. The band is clearly modeled after the aforementioned Immortal through their vocal style and riffing.

4. GHOST: OPUS EPONYMOUS
This album was not released in the U.S. until early in 2011 so it is not really my fault I missed it. This album blew my mind. Ghost sound similar to Blue Oyster Cult, but with blatantly Satanic and Anti-Christian lyrics. The lyrics contrasted stunningly with the often surprisingly beautiful music and the dry vocals. It was absolutely shocking. Unfortunately, I have a feeling this is a novelty and the next album will not be met with as much adulation.

3. DENOUNCEMENT PYRE: WORLD CREMATION
After years of releasing singles, demos, and EPs, Australia's Denouncement Pyre finally released their debut full-length album in 2010, which I promptly missed out on until 2011. The band is made up of well-seasoned veterans of Australia's underground metal scene, so there was never any doubt that they knew what they were doing. This album was absolutely crushing.

2. GRAND MAGUS: HAMMER OF THE NORTH
Grand Magus released my Album of the Year in 2008, so it was surprising that it took me nearly seven months from the release of this album to finally track it down. Once I did, obviously I was not disappointed. Grand Magus has found a way to make 1980's traditional metal sound as fresh and vital as it did back then. Grand Magus is easily one of the more interesting bands going right now.

1. WITHERED: DUALITAS
Withered took blackened death and combined it with sludge and post metal to release an album that could have easily competed for the Album of the Year last year. This album still takes my breath away every time I hear it now almost a full year later. This is a mindfuck of an album.

Year in Metal: 2010

I have finally come to the final post in this series. Go here for the larger post. As usual, here are five more albums that I missed covering in that post.

DENOUNCEMENT PYRE: WORLD CREMATION
Denouncement Pyre was covered just a couple of days ago in an Initial Impressions post. The Australian band possesses a sound similar to other groups in the scene such as Abominator, Destroyer 666, and others. With good reason too as both of the current members and all of the band's previous members have been in a number of other Australian bands. That is one of the more interesting parts of that particular scene. This is a particularly brutal album, even for the scene.

GHOST: OPUS EPONYMOUS
Subject to a ton of hype in the latter couple of months of 2010, this album actually released in the U.S. early in 2011 but was released in Europe well before that. Ghost takes 1970's hard rock groups like Blue Oyster Cult and combines them with early doom metal for a surprisingly infectious sound. At this time, there is still no information out there about who the members of Ghost are or what the band is really trying to accomplish, but it is a fun ride.

GRAND MAGUS: HAMMER OF THE NORTH
I was just not able to get my hands on Grand Magus's 2010 release during the calendar year. That is a shame too because their 2008 album was my Album of the Year so I was definitely looking forward to this one. Grand Magus did not alter their approach too much. This is still a 1980's heavy metal-inspired album with some truly catchy tracks and the amazing vocals of JB. Grand Magus should be the next big thing in metal, but nothing ever seems to work out the way it should.

INQUISITION: OMINOUS DOCTRINES OF THE PERPETUAL MYSTICAL MACROCOSM
Inquisition has become known for long album and song titles, this one certainly takes first prize in that. What we have here is good old South American black metal. Inquisition's sound is rooted in second wave Norwegian black metal with sonic ties to groups like Immortal. This is true black metal at its best. Inquisition takes the black metal torch and runs with it here. Initial Impressions to come soon.

WITHERED: DUALITAS
This album could easily have been my Album of the Year if I had found it during the calendar year. That is how freaking good it is. I had missed out on this band for a long time but when I discovered how great this album was, I realized my mistake. Withered plays black/death metal but with some droning and post-metal qualities. All of that thrown together creates a harrowing and suffocating album that is cold and miserable. What a great album.

Initial Impressions: Denouncement Pyre: World Cremation

This album was listed as Metal Maniacs' Album of the Year for 2010. That coupled with the fact that Denouncement Pyre is a black/thrash/death metal band from Australia finally convinced me that I needed to check them out. After forming in 2003 and releasing a number of demos, EPs, and splits, this is the band's long-awaited full-length debut album.

Denouncement Pyre is the project of Decaylust from Hunters Moon and InVotan from Portal and Misery's Omen, more bands that I enjoy quite a bit. So yeah, this thing should be pretty much right up my alley. And of course it is.

Denouncement Pyre definitely has the sound of Aussie "war metal" down. This is dirty and sleazy blackened death that calls to mind Abominator, Bestial Warlust, and non-Aussie groups like Sarcofago and Blasphemy. It is brutal and dark and has some qualities of old school black metal and occult death metal woven in as well. There is also a hint of 1980's era grind boiling just beneath the surface.

The riffs are sinister and grind along throughout the album. It is clear that Decaylust cited a number of influences for his riffing style, including Deicide, Mayhem, and others. Decaylust roars out his vocals with a ferocious snarl and InVotan contributes with some amazingly dexterous drumwork. This is a bleak and hostile album. Just the way I like them.

The Australian "war metal" scene has stagnated in recent years with the dissolutions of Atomizer, Gospel of the Horns, and other groups. Denouncement Pyre breathes new life into the sound and this is one of the best such releases in some time.