COFFIN LUST - Manifestation of Inner Darkness (HELLS HEADBANGERS LP 2016)
It was about time for these
Australian beasts to unleash their debut album! Four years have passed since
they did “Beyond the Dark” demo, which I still have in my collection somewhere.
By the way, I remember it was Putrid Matt, who recommended me to check Coffin
Lust! Great job, indeed. But I almost forgot about their existence, until I saw
the vinyl of “Manifestation of Inner Darkness” in one of the distros. I didn’t
even have idea that Coffin Lust are still active and are about to do this
album. So, I welcomed this news with open arms and neck ready for fuckin
headbanging. And now after spinning “Manifestation of Inner Darkness” several
times I have to say that this album didn’t disappoint me at all. It’s just damn
awesome slab of filthy old school death metal; a feast for die hard headbangers
and pure mutilating pleasure!
I’m really pleased with what I
found on “Manifestation of Inner Darkness” and all this time I was waiting for
this album to appear was worth it. And more so, I am lucky that my wife and
kids are away for the weekend, so nothing disturbs me and I just play this
record so damn loud that the walls crack. Only this way you’ll make sure that this
raw and obscure death metal is so vicious and aggressive that you can feel the
riffs are cutting your skin in sadistic bliss. I immediately loved the
production! Maybe some of you will think that the guitars sound too thin, but I
don’t. I actually love their old school tone and how rough and powerful it all
is. Definitely this sound fits Coffin Lust perfectly and more importantly, it’s
not that common to hear a band sounding this way, especially in Australia,
where many bands try to sound like Portal or Destroyer 666. Definitely it
brings you to one conclusion – “Manifestation of Inner Darkness” is very
traditional sounding death metal album that doesn’t sound outdated or too
archaic. Listening to this album made me also grab “Beyond the Dark” demo again
and I have to say also that the sound difference between both recordings is
quite big. And I’m not sure which of these recordings I like more haha! Both
sound fuckin great, I love the demo, it’s so bloody killer and nasty, it’s
definitely more harsh and less organic… but the songs are just fantastic. “Manifestation
of Inner Darkness” sound is cleaner, but still obscure and raw, and it’s old
school to the bone. So I guess the best is to say that both releases sound great.
If “Manifestation…” surprised
me with anything, then I would say that aside its cleaner production is the
fact that songs are not quite as harsh and fast as you would expect after
hearing “Beyond the Dark”. Tempo wise, this album is mainly mid paced, with
only occasional faster parts… And well, if I had any complains, then maybe I
would wish to hear more of these killer fast parts. This is probably why I like
songs such as “Mass Extinction” or “Prophecy of Malevolence” the most, as
they’re the fastest and most violent. But it’s all good really, the title song
for example has some of the best riffs on the whole album, what a great piece
it is! It’s interesting that you cannot make just one or two obvious
comparisons of Coffin Lust to other bands anymore. It’s not just one band, one
country or even one continent, but rather a whole legion of killer old school
death metal cults. In some ways “Manifestation of Inner Darkness” is almost
unique, not many bands sounds alike, which is a great achievement of this band.
Summing things up, if you’ve
never heard their “Beyond the Dark” demo then you probably don’t even know that
band like Coffin Lust ever existed. So, let me say that “Manifestation of Inner
Darkness” should put them in the right and deserved place of old school death
metal scene and should catch attention of all maniacs that worship this style
of music. This album is definitely a very good piece of filth, it has such a
great feeling and atmosphere that personally I felt only a pleasure when
listening to it. Check it out then. There’s a CD and vinyl, pick up what format
you prefer, but don’t hesitate.
Standout tracks: “Mass
Extinction”, “Prophecy of Malevolence”, “Chaos Absolute”, "Manifestation
of Inner Darkness"
Final rate: 80/100
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