Review by Felix on June 1, 2021.

Osmose Records once was a guarantor for highly exciting, really groundbreaking black metal. Immortal, Impaled Nazarene, Master's Hammer, Marduk... do you need more legendary names that indicate the importance of this idiosyncratic French company back in the nineties? Tsatthoggua was one of their lesser known signings and I don't want to blame my German fellows, but it did not come as a surprise that Hosanna Bizarre and its successor failed to have a great impact. Come closer, because I can only whisper the following, slightly embarrassing sentence. Shush! The guys were prone to cheap showmanship.

Yes, the drums of 'Niemals Geboren' - to pick out one single piece arbitrarily - deliver hyper-speed hammering, but this does not mean that they score with a massive sound. Tsatthoggua walks the fine line between somehow expressionist black metal and grindcore-esque eruption. The entire album is noisy and slightly molesting while suffering from stupid intermezzos (heavy breathing under a gas mask...) at the same time. Doubtlessly, the will to create total chaos is at the expense of the atmosphere. Only keyboard lines occasionally create ambiance - but black metal needs a higher quantum of atmosphere. Otherwise it feels like a Napalm Death song without these mentally disturbed pig squeals: maybe acceptable, but not the real thing. Yet these guys wanted to shock, regardless of the consequences. An affinity for provocation motivated the dudes, just have a look at the pretty shitty artwork. (By the way, why is your ear so close to my mouth? Please keep the proper distance or do you think I whisper?)

It's sad, but what needs to be said is that the song-writing talent of the horde remained modest. They had many ideas, but they were not really able to put them together in a clever manner. Many tunes suffer from a wild yet incoherent mix. They are simply too erratic. The title track begins with a great riff, simple but clearly defined and powerful. Yet the longer the song lasts, the more crude parts and abrupt breaks show up. At the end, one is confronted with a torn number which has its charm due to some nice details (a short spooky staccato of the keyboards leaves its mark), but more experienced musicians would have found a better format for this conglomerate of blast beats, hysterical, shrill screams, violent guitars and brief melodic throw-ins. It's obvious: Tsatthoggua intended to define a new degree of extremity, but they were just loud, blatantly gimmicky, slightly moronic and stubborn while setting the wrong focus. Hosanna Bizarre has its moments, but instead of creating the best possible compositions, the dudes loved to offer primitive shock effects for the devout grandma or the uptight Babbit next door. Some sections are really fascinating, for example the first metallic part of 'Worm Of Sin'. But after all, an overloaded, relatively nonsensical chunk of metal remains. The boundaries between the single pieces become blurred and only chaos remains.

Of course, catchiness is no essential element for this kind of music, but I wish I could say that there are at least a few catchy parts. Far from it. Tsatthoggua integrate eerie sequences, female voices, malignant nagging and their guitar lines are influenced by Swedish death metal from time to time (listen to the closer in this context), but they simply forgot that it is not forbidden to write some fragments which keep sticking in the listener's mind. The four musicians don't play "all against all", nevertheless, a coherent overall picture does not arise. Hosanna Bizarre, whose production reaches a solid level, is therefore a record with some light, but with a lot of shadows as well. And it is definitely not breathtaking. One can breathe deeply and naturally when listening to this extrovert and partially childish debut. And this is the case even when wearing a gasmask.

Rating: 6 out of 10

Review by Alex on December 17, 2018.

Usually when a band takes so long to put out their first full length release, in most cases they are dedicating all energies into crafting something that will have a serious impact on the scene they represent. Letheria first emerged in the year 1999 with a demo residing under the name Profane Oath, since then, the Finish band has only been releasing material in the form of Ep's and demos up until 2018. The one thing I admire the most about the Finish metal scene is the quality of music they strive to create; under no circumstance do they relax or take music for granted, they always give their best attempt at molding their craft and presenting it for listening pleasure and scrutiny. What Letheria has done on this latest offering titled Death-Principle, is take influences of melodic death metal, punk metal, hard rock, old school death metal, hardcore and black metal and somehow mix them effectively to produce a piece of work that has many faces each boasting a proficiency in a select sub-genre of metal. 19 years of experience has done nothing but equip and harness Letheria’s growing strength in diverse musical compositions. Letheria’s drive to command attention is brilliantly put on a display with Death-Principle due to the multiple styles and song writing techniques used in the generating of their first full length record. There is so much happening on each track that it would be unfair to label Death-Principle “run of the mill” death metal. Death-Principle is the culmination of experience and dedication, it’s a monster comprised of many horrors that comes to surface ever so often before being restrained.

Given the somewhat shaky beginning of the record, it was difficult at first to make sense of what Letheria had set out to accomplish. The songs were not too shabby at all, they however were not very effective at cohesively blending the various styles thus leading to mixed feelings about the opening moments of the band’s debut record Death-Principle. It however picked up interest immediately on “One Spit of a Thousand Swears”. At this time the formula begins to demonstrate signs of potency, the idea behind the record sparks understanding and from that point everything else etches onto the record with purpose. With the arrival of “Pestchrist” Letheria start pelting out the melodies and man what a treat they are to hear; you get the feeling of listening to an entirely different record. The arrangements groove into the rhythm much more smoothly instead of sounding stranded and searching for its place. Following sudden burst of momentum, more wicked tunes begin to crawl from the dark, songs like “Call the Horns”, “The Kingdom in Coffins of Kings and Gods” and my favorite, “Malaria Magdalena” battle for the spotlight while delivering catchy guitar leads and riffs. The drumming is a definite highlight on Death-Principle, it goes from mid-paced groovy, to hardcore, to melodic black metal, to black/death blasts beats and constant snare stomping. It must require a level head to memorize and execute such ever changing drum styles; well done the drummer. The riffs hold up against the test of the drums; they partake in the musical journey with a few added surprises where you least expect them. The vocals are a blend of snarling grunts, punk laden declarations in the form of shouting and a chants that lay naked and raw on Death-Principle. The vocalist delivers an array of blends during the lyrical passages spoken on each entry thus adhering to the multiple faces of Letheria’s Death-Principle. 

In most ways you may consider this venture an experimental one judging by the diverse patterns of Letheria’s sound. Death-Principle seems as though the band is just having fun and after being around for nearly decades who can tell them not to. 

Pestilential Passages of Protest

• “Pestchrist”
• ”Call The Horns”
• ”The Kingdom in Coffins of Kings and Gods”
• ”Malaria Magdalena”
• ”With Tears of Urine You Will Cry His Name”
• ”Fire Speaks”

Rating: 8.2 out of 10