ASHEN TOMB (Fin) – ‘Ashen Tomb’ TAPE

“The bottom line for any band’s debut is damn near nonexistent since there are little to no preconceived notions of what the band’s sound is actually going to be or how it will be approached, yet there’s always something comforting when being told that such an effort is the style in its simplest yet most effective form. When it came to their debut, Ashen Tomb’s something is uncompromisingly straightforward death metal. Naught but three tracks adorn this EP with a 14-minute runtime, it would be an understatement to say that this effort checks off all the right boxes when it comes to creations of death metal that are nothing but. Nothing overly fancy or mind-bending is done here which really allowed Ashen Tomb to craft a death metal sound that can simply be itself, but it’s even in such a circumstance that the very reality of this eponymous effort is nothing short of ear-catching as it’s not just undeniably vicious but wildly effective from the very beginning. It’s packed to the rim with riffs and nastiness the likes of which only the best acts in the very undergrowth of the death metal scene are able to achieve in a pure form of undeniable, visceral ecstasy on a level the likes of which the masses will surely flock to if given the chance. This is death metal as it should be by those seeking to keep the stench of rotting flesh strong and the tombs constantly overflowing: singular in its goal and unforgiving right from the very beginning as the very shadow of death looms over all that comes even close to what this EP summons forth”.