Review by chrisc7249 on April 18, 2022.

Tempestas was an obscure band from Brazil that existed for a very short period in the mid 1990s, in a scene not known for its technical death metal. Brazil had always focused more on black and thrash attacks, with a few death metal bands that had some name recognition, and even fewer that had a progressive/technical edge to their sound. Alongside countrymates Strangulation, who released their debut this same year, Tempestas aimed to change that by bringing artsy death metal to the Brazilian mainstream. Their one and only album doesn't receive much attention, but I'm a firm believer that this shouldn't be, as Tempestas were able to create some of the finest progressive death metal of their time.

Euphony Of Contradictions kicks off with the riff-tastic whirlwind that is 'Foreseeable Survivance', a winding song that cycles through multiple sections and crushing riffs in a Death-like fashion, setting the tone for the rest of the record. Above all else, "Individual Thought Patterns" and "Human" era Death reign supreme in their eclectic sound. This is followed by the incorrectly spelled but seriously catchy 'Metabolic Disfunction', a quite progressive affair that doesn't ever become too complex and can find its way getting stuck in your head for the rest of the day. The title track starts with a daunting piano introduction before shifting into high gear, showing off influences from Atheist and Nocturnus.

'Storm Of Hallucinations' and 'Exitus Letalis' showcase the band working with longer songs, and to great success. Both of them, especially the latter of the two are epic tracks that are worthy of a number of re-listens to let the song slowly digest into your brain. 'Clandestine Ways' and 'Black Market O' Flesh' are certainly memorable, though they are perhaps the two weakest tracks of the album - still good in their own right.

This album is nowhere near as great as it is without the closing track 'Out Of Synchronism'. I'm a big last song guy, and I often look forward to hearing the last song on an album as I believe it should be one of, if not, the best song on the album. This track is perhaps the best of their short career, a sub 4 minute track that emphasizes everything the band does best. Despite it's short runtime, this song cycles through multiple great riffs and an extremely catchy chorus that'll have you singing (growling) along with the vocals. It's epic despite its length, both progressive and melodic while remaining heavy and brutal. Truly an outro for the ages and perhaps one of the best technical death metal songs of all time.

The sound of the album is quite gritty, definitely not polished at all. I do enjoy this sound for the album though, as everything is audible but not overproduced. It's a perfect 1990s technical death metal sound, one that I've come to know and love as I continue to delve deeper into this genre. The bass has a good sound, the guitars still have punch and the drums don't sound robotic. The vocalist has a John Tardy-esque rasp, and wails over the music with a lot of power and emotion and his vocals surely shouldn't be forgotten, as he puts on quite a unique display on this record. May he rest in peace.

Technical prowess was certainly not hard to come by in the mid 1990s, and Tempestas were among the many tech death bands to begin their short lived careers during this time period. It's a shame that we most likely won't ever see this band, or any incarnation of it again, as it seems most of the band members decided to do nothing else after Tempestas' existence came to an end. Still, what we do have is a virtuous display of intelligent musicianship paired alongside crushing heaviness. A gem of an album, lathered with multiple memorable songs to create a record that shouldn't be forgotten.

FFO: Death, Dissonance, Polluted Inheritance

Favorite song: 'Out Of Synchronism'

Rating: 8 out of 10