First is a leasurely series in which I discuss my first impressions of an upcoming release. This is not a critical review, but something pennede after one listen of promotional material or the full release.

After two demos and an EP, Spain’s trio known as Sepulchral have signed a deal with Soulseller Records to unleash their debut full-length album. Which just so happened to cross my inbox from the awesome folks at ClawHammer PR. Intrigued by the black and white artwork supplied by Jaime P.S, I hit play expecting just another underground or “cavernous” black/death metal group to cast into the pile. My expectations, thankfully, were greatly mistaken.

What started out as a sampling through background music while grinding away at a new video game, it didn’t take long once the introductory track “The Funerary Dirge” concluded and the chugging, buzzing distortions on “Harbor of Drifting Souls” kicked in. The steady drumming refused to let go of my throat among some of the leads that screamed Swedish death such as Dissection crossed with God Dethroned. In fact, in some spots I was vaguely reminded of the latter’s “Loyal to the Crown of God Dethroned”.

From there, it was one solid old school death metal track after another. The quality of the mix also pulls the drums to the forefront, which is a huge benefit during some of the blasting sections. However, when it comes to bringing things around to “face in the mud from a boot on the back of your head” brutality, the down-tuned buzz of the guitars takes over with the vocals to constantly change the pacing (as well as what instrument demands your focus) like with “Ceremony of Putrefaction”, or just an all out fun romp full of random growls and blehs such as the lengthy start of “Bastards from the Grave”.

Ok, so my first impression was way off. Hey, I can be wrong some times! How long have I been out of the game due to life kicking me square in the balls on repeat throughout 2021? In this case the mistake proved to be something far better than what was expected. I’m a sucker for some osdm, and From Beyond The Burial Mound definitely ticked every box on what I think makes a great band in that style. A proper review will come soon, but I just had to gush about this upcoming release as Sepulchral prepare to brand their name in the 2022 edition of up-and-coming acts to keep a close eye on in the metal world.

From Beyond The Burial Mound is due to drop February 25th, and can thankfully be pre-ordered from one of two sites). If you’re in America (like I) you can pre-order a copy HERE. The rest of the world can pre-order via Soulseller’s official BANDCAMP page.

Digital review material for this article provided by Soulseller Records
via ClawHammer PR.