Black Hole Deity unveils itself with a first EP.
Entitled Lair of the Xenolich, it is the result of the work made by Cameron Pinkerton (bass/guitar/backing vocals, ex-Chaos Inception), Mike Heller (drums, Amahiru, Fear Factory, Malignancy, Raven, ex-System Divide…), Alec Cordero (guitar, Calcemia, Cruelty Exalted) and Chris White (vocals, Blood Stained Dusk, ex-Chaos Inception, ex-Wormreich) since 2019.
The Americans’ Death Metal is heavy, massive and dyed with some darker influences, as Razed Earth Edict, the first song, shows. Hints of technicality slip into the flood of riffs, which seems relentless and does not slow down. The singer’s howlings are sometimes covered by some screamed backing vocals, as on Railgun Combat, a song that proves again fastness and effectiveness are two watchwords for the band. The battle seems endless, but after a fast-paced lead part Hypersleep Dementia begins. A soft interlude on which the guitar is accompanied by Ally Storch-Hukriede (Ally the Fiddle, Subway to Sally, ex-Haggard) on violin, then the storm comes back with Multiverse Incantations. The song is quite groovy, but also very martial, allowing the band to spread heavy parts while adding some technicality, as well as intriguing sounds. Lair of the Xenolich, the last song, picks into unhealthy and Old School sonorities for an unstoppable strike force from beginning to end, which also marks the EP’s end.
Lair of the Xenolich is for me the first contact with Black Hole Deity, and it is positive! The band spreads so much strength, dubbed by technicality and a dark sound for this quarter of an hour of music, which makes me hope for more quickly!
90/100