Be ready for suffering with Pure Wrath.
Created in 2014 in Indonesia by Ryo (all instruments/vocals, Cadavoracity, Insolence, Lament, Perverted Dexterity…), the one-man band offers us Hymn To The Woeful Hearts, his new album, in 2022, accompanied by Dice (piano/keyboards, Victorian, Dice Midyanti) and Yuriy Kononov (drums, Sauroctonos, Suicide Nation, ex-Schattenfall, ex-White Ward).
The musician is supported on stage by Teguh Prasetyo (bass, Insolence, Digging Up…), Arief Rahadian (drums, Digging Up, Chancroid, Opium) and Agung Prasetia (guitar, Opium, Interfectorment, Tujikane…).
The soft introduction of The Cloak of Disquiet is of course melancholic, but we had no reason to let us think about the wave of fast-paced blackness the musician invokes right after it. Intense riffs and deep howlings are accompanied by tearing leads and majestic keyboards, creating an incredibly effective contrast, whether it is during energetic parts of weighing breaks, then Years of Silence unveils very Old School elements. The ice-cold sound perfectly stick to those raw screams, sometimes strengthened by unhealthy choirs, but also epic and heady harmonics, like on Presages from A Restless Soul and its piercing leads. The rhythmic stays really heavy and ensures an impressive and dark basis, allowing vocals to spread all despair’s energy while making it fascinating, whether it is by its strength or its viscerality, while Footprints of the Lost Child offers more aggressive elements. Influences are different, but the execution stays focused on the same concept shared between unstoppable unfurling waves and more soaring parts, on which we find soft vocals instead of usual howlings, which will surface again later. The final drives us to Those Who Stand Still, a song that keeps melancholy while infusing it with very raw and sharp patterns, creating an abyss in which the musician can add his own touch, but also very appeasing parts as well as orchestrations before ending with Hymn to the Woeful Hearts, the eponymous track, accompanied by Nick Kushnir (Midgard, Sauroctonos, Suicide Nation) on guitar. A bit more than three minutes of soft and reassuring soft composition which lulls us before leaving us in the shadows.
With this new album, Pure Wrath adds a fix of hatred and despair to an already dark and pessimistic landscape. Even though it is made of pure blackness, Hymn To The Woeful Hearts turns out to be sometimes majestic and melancholic, creating an addictive contrast.
90/100
