Review by Felix on May 28, 2023.

A question: do people die twice in the Czech Republic? I just ask because this country is the only one that is considered on part 1 and part 2 of “The History of Death and Burial Rituals”. But honestly speaking, I don’t think so. I suspect much more that Death Karma are patriots with an affinity for death. Not only this, they are competent musicians and composers as well. Given this fact, let us breathe in the sombre sounds in this world before we have to listen to them in the hereafter.

Haiti is the first station on our journey which we dedicate to death in all its facets. “Voodoo” gives orientation, because its mid-harsh, percussive mid-tempo approach and the raw, throaty vocals will accompany us on the whole tour. The same goes for the guitars that deliver expressive melodies. “Voodoo” also houses a few repetitive parts that create a meditative mood, an element that can also be found in their song about the Tibetan “Sky Burial”. Its “om mani padme hum” mantra gives you the opportunity to let your mind wander. Apart from this section, the song celebrates pretty excessive, dynamic and comparatively fast instrumental parts, but there are also eerie, harmonious sections in which death wraps a warm cloak around the listener for his final journey. No doubt, these two songs set the bar high for the remaining tracks.

“The History of Death and Burial Rituals Part II” is a work that follows a holistic concept. It’s not only music that has (mostly) a fascinating touch. In view of their cultural background, the lyrics add value to the songs, too. But it is also interesting to get a song without lyrics. The instrumental, multi-layered closer leads us to Japan and forces you to do your own research. As far as I can see, it is dedicated to Aokigahara, the suicide forest of the country. What a lot there is, you can only marvel at it. Anyway, the full, voluminous and pretty warm production marks another positive component and the same applies for the carefully designed booklet.

Death Karma usually avoid brutal sounds, only during their stopover in New Zealand they get quite angry. Well, we learn that violence is not the band’s core competence. “M.M.M.” is okay, but definitely not among the highlights. Therefore I am happy as soon as we can set sail towards Egypt. Its representative has some (great) harsh parts as well, but its most intriguing detail is the soft melody at the end. It seems as if the “Pharaohs” were caressed to death. Who wants to do this job for me when my time has come?

The music of Death Karma does not lack the odd element that is wide spread in the metallic landscapes of Czech Republic and Slovakia. Master’s Hammer or Malokarpatan send greetings from the distance, but Cult of Fire are the true spiritual brothers of Death Karma. However, I probably can't really speak of brothers; the same musicians are at work here and there. It doesn’t matter. This second part slightly weaker than the first one, but a couple of songs are more or less as good as those of the first full-length. The album’s only serious shortcoming is that it doesn’t convey a desire to die – fortunately.

Rating:7.8 out of 10

Review by Felix on May 28, 2023.

A question: do people die twice in the Czech Republic? I just ask because this country is the only one that is considered on part 1 and part 2 of “The History of Death and Burial Rituals”. But honestly speaking, I don’t think so. I suspect much more that Death Karma are patriots with an affinity for death. Not only this, they are competent musicians and composers as well. Given this fact, let us breathe in the sombre sounds in this world before we have to listen to them in the hereafter.

Haiti is the first station on our journey which we dedicate to death in all its facets. “Voodoo” gives orientation, because its mid-harsh, percussive mid-tempo approach and the raw, throaty vocals will accompany us on the whole tour. The same goes for the guitars that deliver expressive melodies. “Voodoo” also houses a few repetitive parts that create a meditative mood, an element that can also be found in their song about the Tibetan “Sky Burial”. Its “om mani padme hum” mantra gives you the opportunity to let your mind wander. Apart from this section, the song celebrates pretty excessive, dynamic and comparatively fast instrumental parts, but there are also eerie, harmonious sections in which death wraps a warm cloak around the listener for his final journey. No doubt, these two songs set the bar high for the remaining tracks.

“The History of Death and Burial Rituals Part II” is a work that follows a holistic concept. It’s not only music that has (mostly) a fascinating touch. In view of their cultural background, the lyrics add value to the songs, too. But it is also interesting to get a song without lyrics. The instrumental, multi-layered closer leads us to Japan and forces you to do your own research. As far as I can see, it is dedicated to Aokigahara, the suicide forest of the country. What a lot there is, you can only marvel at it. Anyway, the full, voluminous and pretty warm production marks another positive component and the same applies for the carefully designed booklet.

Death Karma usually avoid brutal sounds, only during their stopover in New Zealand they get quite angry. Well, we learn that violence is not the band’s core competence. “M.M.M.” is okay, but definitely not among the highlights. Therefore I am happy as soon as we can set sail towards Egypt. Its representative has some (great) harsh parts as well, but its most intriguing detail is the soft melody at the end. It seems as if the “Pharaohs” were caressed to death. Who wants to do this job for me when my time has come?

The music of Death Karma does not lack the odd element that is wide spread in the metallic landscapes of Czech Republic and Slovakia. Master’s Hammer or Malokarpatan send greetings from the distance, but Cult of Fire are the true spiritual brothers of Death Karma. However, I probably can't really speak of brothers; the same musicians are at work here and there. It doesn’t matter. This second part slightly weaker than the first one, but a couple of songs are more or less as good as those of the first full-length. The album’s only serious shortcoming is that it doesn’t convey a desire to die – fortunately.

Rating:7.8 out of 10

Review by Fernando on December 19, 2023.

Thrash metal is a very reliable type of subgenre within metal, and it's also very versatile, as any band can be very serious about it, or have fun with it. And today we have a case of the former, Bestial Reviler is a Russian thrash band that has apparently decided to reform, and this brand new EP is their first offering of new material. Being unfamiliar with this band, I decided to give this a shot.

Since this is an EP I’ll get my one gripe with it right now, it’s short, by the time it ends I feel like the band teased me, and at just under 16 minutes it is definitely a tease. That being said, I also appreciate that the band was able to pack those 16 minutes up with excellent material. Bestial Reviler’s particular style of thrash metal is very much indebted to early Sodom and Kreator, a bit of Bathory and rounded up with a strong influence from early Sepultura and Sarcófago. So by mentioning those bands you can definitely expect some intense and raw thrash metal with hits of death metal and black metal, particularly with the vocals of frontman, bassist and only original member Misotheist, who gives some appropriately guttural growling which feels like it will be reeking of beer. And while the band aren’t reinventing the wheel or anything, they sure know their way around old school underground thrash metal, if you told me this record was from 1989, I would believe it.

In regards to the details, the band is a really tight unit, which is surprising since Misotheist’s new bandmates are from Peru and Finland, and the band relocated to the Czech Republic. I bring the band being an international affair because again, they’re a strong unit, for as short as this EP is, they wasted no time at all, there’s absolutely no filler, and their performances are uniformly great, Misotheist aside from being a good growler is also a very proficient bassist, being able to be very fast and also have enough groove to set himself apart from the guitars. And speaking of the guitars Ger Pivopath Six, is a master shredder, his riffs and soloing alone are a reason to check this EP, but his best display of skill is his dynamism, as he’s able to shred with both fast and mid pace. And last but not least is Rektor, and you guessed it, he’s excellent as well, like Ger, he also effortlessly switches between fast and mid pace, but more importantly, his drumming gives the music punk edge that often gets lost in thrash metal bands. So all in all, excellent musicians displaying how good thrash metal can sound with skilled musicians playing their instruments.

The production is the last element I wanted to highlight primarily because Ger Pivopath Six did the mixing and mastering, but also because the band were able to tread a fine line between having an appropriately gritty production and without sacrificing fidelity or sounding dated, the songs sound like they were recorded in the late 80’s but there’s finer details in the mix that show this is a modern record, particularly the vocals and the drums, which sound very good, and if you know your classic underground extreme metal records, that usually wasn’t the case. This isn’t a criticism, mind you, as the band successfully pays homage to the past without being chained to it.

Overall for a comeback EP Bestial Reviler sure did make up for all that lost time, while I still would’ve preferred a full album, I respect the band for taking things easy given the fact its a completely new lineup and they reformed during the pandemic. Nevertheless this is still an excellent display of their skills and a good tease of whatever’s to come next.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Review by Fernando on December 19, 2023.

Thrash metal is a very reliable type of subgenre within metal, and it's also very versatile, as any band can be very serious about it, or have fun with it. And today we have a case of the former, Bestial Reviler is a Russian thrash band that has apparently decided to reform, and this brand new EP is their first offering of new material. Being unfamiliar with this band, I decided to give this a shot.

Since this is an EP I’ll get my one gripe with it right now, it’s short, by the time it ends I feel like the band teased me, and at just under 16 minutes it is definitely a tease. That being said, I also appreciate that the band was able to pack those 16 minutes up with excellent material. Bestial Reviler’s particular style of thrash metal is very much indebted to early Sodom and Kreator, a bit of Bathory and rounded up with a strong influence from early Sepultura and Sarcófago. So by mentioning those bands you can definitely expect some intense and raw thrash metal with hits of death metal and black metal, particularly with the vocals of frontman, bassist and only original member Misotheist, who gives some appropriately guttural growling which feels like it will be reeking of beer. And while the band aren’t reinventing the wheel or anything, they sure know their way around old school underground thrash metal, if you told me this record was from 1989, I would believe it.

In regards to the details, the band is a really tight unit, which is surprising since Misotheist’s new bandmates are from Peru and Finland, and the band relocated to the Czech Republic. I bring the band being an international affair because again, they’re a strong unit, for as short as this EP is, they wasted no time at all, there’s absolutely no filler, and their performances are uniformly great, Misotheist aside from being a good growler is also a very proficient bassist, being able to be very fast and also have enough groove to set himself apart from the guitars. And speaking of the guitars Ger Pivopath Six, is a master shredder, his riffs and soloing alone are a reason to check this EP, but his best display of skill is his dynamism, as he’s able to shred with both fast and mid pace. And last but not least is Rektor, and you guessed it, he’s excellent as well, like Ger, he also effortlessly switches between fast and mid pace, but more importantly, his drumming gives the music punk edge that often gets lost in thrash metal bands. So all in all, excellent musicians displaying how good thrash metal can sound with skilled musicians playing their instruments.

The production is the last element I wanted to highlight primarily because Ger Pivopath Six did the mixing and mastering, but also because the band were able to tread a fine line between having an appropriately gritty production and without sacrificing fidelity or sounding dated, the songs sound like they were recorded in the late 80’s but there’s finer details in the mix that show this is a modern record, particularly the vocals and the drums, which sound very good, and if you know your classic underground extreme metal records, that usually wasn’t the case. This isn’t a criticism, mind you, as the band successfully pays homage to the past without being chained to it.

Overall for a comeback EP Bestial Reviler sure did make up for all that lost time, while I still would’ve preferred a full album, I respect the band for taking things easy given the fact its a completely new lineup and they reformed during the pandemic. Nevertheless this is still an excellent display of their skills and a good tease of whatever’s to come next.

Rating: 8 out of 10