Needless is back with its second album.
Created in 2004 in Hungary, the band waits until 2009 for its first demo, then 2015 for a first EP. At the beginning of 2022, Ádám Forczek (vocals, Damnation), Tamás Bárány (guitar, Damnation), László Bánfalvi (bass), Fogl Botond (guitar) and Botond Kasper (drums, Within the Mind) introduce us to The Cosmic Cauldron.
We begin with Warvoid A.D., a first track which will immediately place this spatial universe with sharp melodies. Howlings join the skillful and technical harmonics, borrowing as much to Black and Death as to energetic Thrash, then the hooking Astrogate The Spectral Lane strikes. Riffs are quickly heady, offering the vocalist the possibility to let us enjoy his terrifying screams or heavier howlings while the epic instrumental carries us, then The Predation unveils darker sonorities. The introduction’s dissonance is kept for massive riffs and majestic melodies, allowing even a small place for clean vocals, while Mournful Heavens turns out to be as weighing as dark. The sound is heavier, but patterns also participate in this pessimistic and haunting ambience, creating a contrast with vocals’ rage, while The Cosmic Cauldron, the eponymous track, reconnects with raw energy. Fast-paced riffs are supported by powerful blast and very effective patterns, to which musicians add their skills, then Odium continues on this path with piercing leads. The rhythmic basis is still as energetic and hooking, then The Prism Fortress comes back on those haunting and airy tones, and we even feel this haunting melancholy when the rhythmic accelerates. Heady harmonics drive us to Chrononaut and its motivating groove, while offering sometimes dark, sometimes quieter parts, as we can hear on this clean break, then the band continues into calmness for Planet Oblivion. Joined by Martina Horvath (Thy Catafalque, The Answer Lies in the Black Void…), musicians offer us a mesmerizing duo, unveiling an impressive contrast before the long Transgalactic closes the album. With its ten minutes, the band melts this epic basis with sharp and heady harmonics to more ambient and dark elements, and eventually ends on this piano outro which slowly gets lost into the void.
Needless perfectly knows how to melt energy with strength. But The Cosmic Cauldron does not only spread a Melodic Death/Thrash’s rage, because we also have Black Metal’s dark atmospheres as well as very technical and thoughtful parts.
85/100