ENGULFED (Tur) – ‘Unearthly Litanies of Despair’ LP

Formed in 2010 and with two EPs and a full length of supreme death metal under their belts, Turkish masters of brutality Engulfed return with their sophomore album. Every second of this ruthless offering is a feast of vitriol, pulverizing all in the path of Engulfed’s unforgiving music: a rare example of a band whose technicality is not their downfall, relying on claustrophobic atmospheres and gargantuan levels of malice while playing superbly. The showmanship is tasteful and the songs never suffer for it, rather leaving you in awe of their undeniable talents which span the whole lineup. Moments of mournful gloom inject some dynamic into the total battery and mayhem, while the drive of this album is infallible and never loses momentum for a second, building tension and mood with its formidable and forceful delivery. Right until its dying breaths, Engulfed’s new offering is a lesson in visceral death metal magnificence that must be learned by all.