Throneum - Pestilent Death

 

THRONEUM - Pestilent Death (APOCALYPTOR - LP 2005)

Throneum is one of those bands, which hardly ever disappoint and I think I can risk saying that every album, which the band from Bytom has released, is a worthy dose of obscure, morbid and chaotic death metal. “Pestilent Death” released in 2005 by Australian Apocalytor Records, is also yet another killer LP in their discography and even if I admit that I have enjoyed the previous LP “Mutiny of Death” a little bit more, this one is also truly excellent and shouldn’t disappoint the fans of the band. The album is actually a little bit weird; with just about 30 minutes of music it offers 15 songs, what is a lot and gives an average of something like 2 minutes per song. This will obviously bring a change in some song structures and arrangements but at the same time I think it only increases the dose of brutality and ferocity, that intensity of Throneum music. On this album I think they have even boosted their influence of chaotic and bestial death / black metal and so it truly stands proud on a side to such bands as Bestial Raids and Black Witchery, in my opinion, even if musically it is not necessarily exactly the same thing; BUT there are many COMMON aspects, many similar influences and general feeling. Throneum obviously creates sound and style of their own. As always.

Chris Moyen’s artwork is not the best really, but it definitely fits the music – bestial, guts ripping and just brutal as fuck. Generally the album is soaked with the obscure, sordid feeling and it is just super fast most of the time. If you listen to such song as the opener “Cadaveric Cult (Varf-Shub-Niggurath)” then you may realize how nasty and uncompromising this album is, how utterly disgusting, but still somehow it just catches the attention with awesome, throat cutting riffs, furious vocals of Tom (which as always are very, very characteristic) and filthy, rough production. The whole material is rather simple; mainly because as I mentioned the songs are rather short, so the band just concentrate more on the devastation and pure straight forward noise attack – you have maybe couple of riffs, full blast on and rage, with lyrics, which are also short, but straight to the point, with no bullshit. It is impressive, how Throneum manages to create the atmosphere here, while the music is still so vicious… and at the same time “Pestilent Death” has also such songs as awesome “Evil Worship”, which is slower, bestial anthem. And in such song as “Queen Goat Whore” Throneum peaks, with some of the best vocal work and guitar playing of the whole album. From the other hand I must confess that “Cruel Flesh Devourement” is kind of less exciting songs for me, it’s just too chaotic and doesn’t stand out with anything special. Both this one and also “We Summon Thee” feel like unfinished songs; they end too abruptly, which is somehow weird. But this is only my impression… Side B again offers some killer songs though like “I Invoke You, Gods of the Night” and “Pestilent Death”, which maybe even be my favourite song from the whole LP, even if it is way slower when compared to such “The Way Through Dungeon Tombs”. But maybe because it is slower, it also just stands above the rest of the material and thus sticks in your head immediately. To be honest though, I think I have nothing to complain about the whole album. It really provides a lot of killer music and as always Throneum just destroys. I mentioned this may not be my favourite album of theirs, but it still is better than 99% of everything what is released nowadays and is just damn awesome.

Standout tracks: “Pestilent Death”, “I Invoke You, Gods of the Night”, “Queen Goat Whore”, “Cadaveric Cult (Varf-Shub-Niggurath)”, “Evil Worship”

Final rate: 80/100