Alongside Peaceville and Inferno records, Doomentia have increasingly become a favourite label thanks to their seeming inability to put out a bad album. As a case in point, the label are releasing ‘worship the devil’, the latest opus from Sathanas, the Pennsylvania band that have been cheerfully unleashing their own uniquely powerful and genre-melding brand of metal for over quarter of a century. Despite plenty of activity, including splits and compilations, ‘worship the devil’ is only the band’s ninth album, and clearly such reticence has paid off because listening to the noxious blast of blackened death metal, you’d be forgiven for thinking this is the debut from lean and hungry new contenders, not a veteran band. In short, ‘worship the devil’ is a brutal and belligerent outing that is as likely to please newcomers as it is the returning faithful.
Opening with the sinister ‘written in blood’, the band move through huge, heavy metal chords into full-blooded thrash complete with scarified vocals and a devastating sense of groove that gives the track a brutal sense of power, not to mention a certain element of brooding menace. It’s not unlike Slayer unleashing a set of Venom covers and with powerful leads and impressive production, it’s an album that is as liable to appeal to hardened thrash fans as it is to the death metal community. ‘Satan’s cross’, with overtones of Celtic Frost creeping into the mix, sees Sathanas at their least forgiving, unleashing a series of mind-destroying riffs that spread out from the speakers like shock waves. Best played loud, this is punishing and brutal metal delivered with no small amount of skill and there is no question that this may be one of Sathanas’ finest releases to date. ‘Oath of witchery’ sees the band in full on thrash mode, recalling the likes of Autopsy with their foul riffs and corrosive vocals. It’s a demonic noise that Sathanas revel in, and yet the band keep things tight and memorable enough that the songs are memorable despite their unceasing brutality. Remarkably, ‘marked by the beast’ sees the heat turned up a notch and the riffs carry the unmistakable odour of sulphur and brimstone about them, not least when the band unleash the sort of chugging, hulking riff that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Cannibal Corpse album.
The band take a moment to slow the pace with the blackened swing of ‘upon the age of darkness’, a track that moves from malevolent groove to a blackened death march complete with furious double-kick work and blood-soaked lead work. This is Sathanas at their darkest and most brutal, and yet they remain accessible, adopting a Bolt-thrower-esque momentum, clearly recognizing that speed does not necessarily equal power. ‘In death’s name we pray’ sees the band adding a blacker edge to their sound than found elsewhere, although the emphasis remains on delivering crushing riffs, and Paul Tucker sounds increasingly unhinged as his decaying vocals roam free across the track. A highlight of the album, ‘blessings of doom’ recalls vintage Cradle of Filth (think ‘dusk and her embrace’ era) with its cadaverous vocals and abrupt changes of mood and tempo. The album ends with ‘black paths of devilry’, a searing blast of toxic riffing and relentless percussion that is not unlike being caught inside a vast piece of industrial machinery and slowly crushed within its vice-like interior. It is a fittingly brutal close to the album and yet the brevity of the whole cleverly leaves you wanting more.
Sathanas remain a resolutely underground proposition. The band edge into thrash territory far enough that those who reside at the most extreme end will find much to admire but ‘worship the devil’ remains a proudly niche proposition. With Paul Tucker’s vocals seemingly dragged from the very depths of the inferno and riffs hewn from hellfire itself, this is a dark, blackened voyage through the depraved depths of extreme metal and it is not for the faint of heart. With its demonic cover art and blackened stench, ‘worship the devil’ is a dark, heavy, furiously independent work form a band who never fail to deliver the goods. You may well worship the devil after hearing this album, but whatever your religious denomination you are more likely to end up worshipping Sathanas.
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