Sweden’s Bastard Grave is back.
After a demo, two albums and a spit with Graveyard Ghoul, the band composed of Tiago Dias (vocals, Wokeh), Andreas (guitar), Daniel (guitar), Maria (bass) and Peter (drums) announces Vortex of Disgust, its third album, on Pulverised Records.
The band will quickly reveal their greasy Death Metal on Sunder The Earth, a first composition which skillfully combines a thick rhythmic with dissonant leads before coming back in a more groovy and catchy mix. The dark Old School influences let the band slow down at times, while Icon Barrer will focus on more aggressive and lively patterns without forgetting to place sharp elements and heavier parts to pace the track, just like on Necrotic Ecstasy which uses wild accelerations between two heavy rhythmics. The weighing break uses different and more suffocating influences to lead us to Consumed And Forgotten, a more mysterious track that doesn’t forget the raw Death roots to suddenly accelerate the tempo. The leads continuously feed this dissonant and cavernous atmosphere before Nameless Horror takes over by coupling them with a surprisingly jerky rhythmic. The track takes us through different landscapes with shifting riffs, all led by a powerful voice before an angsty piano introduces Hunger To Devour, letting us breathe for a short while before swallowing the next wave of violence. Fast or slower, the track knows how to be effective as well as Eternal Decomposition which gives unhealthy tones to its heady leads which are perfectly integrated to the aggressive patterns or on the opposite with the most impressive elements. Vortex Of Disgust, the eponymous track, will close the album with a hazy introduction followed by waves of catchy riffs, raw accelerations and massive screams with greasy and dark accents, which will finally be crushed by a disturbing sample.
With Bastard Grave, you can be sure that Old School Death Metal rhymes with quality. Their dark approach makes Vortex of Disgust a rather rhythmic and effective album, whether it is on the wild parts or the slower and more disturbing moments.
80/100