Predatory Void is hungry.
Formed in 2022 in Belgium by the alliance of Lina R (vocals, Cross Bringer), Thijs de Cloedt (guitar, Cobra the Impaler, ex-Aborted), Lennart Bossu (guitar, Amenra, Oathbreaker), Tim De Gieter (bass, Amenra, Doodseskader, Every Stranger Looks Like You), and Vincent Verstrepen (drums, Carnation, ex-Schizophrenia), the band signed to Century Media Records to announce the release of Seven Keys to the Discomfort of Being.
Grovel, the first track, will immediately place a dissonant and saturated sound within which some disturbing melodies are heard, finally followed by the surge of unbridled rage accompanied by screams. Aggression and heaviness strike us in turn, while sometimes leaving room for short and unexpected soft parts, like on the final which suddenly lets (struggling…) explode, revealing both visceral fury and soaring riffs accompanied by an enchanting voice. The abrasive and complementary contrast allows the band to let the two aspects of their musical personality live together, leading us to the haunting Endless Return to the Kingdom of Sleep, which will not hesitate to call for a wild blast and unleashed screams. The rhythmic will eventually adapt by joining the devastating charge before jerky patterns resurface and disappear on the final part. Quietness lasts on Seeds of Frustration, a relatively short composition compared to the others, which lets the vocalist bewitch us in company of soaring but worrying melodies, then rage comes back at full force on The Well Within, a track which starts with fast riffs, to finally let them turn into heavier parts coupled with worrying melodies. However, we will notice this final explosion, before Shedding Weathered Skin comes to reveal its dark saturation slowly spreading itself before strengthening with oppressive vocal parts, then the sound becomes more and more suffocating. Drums will be the first to really break loose, bringing with it the ambient chaos to lead us to Funerary Vision, the last track, which will spread the heady and devastating musical contrast over nearly ten minutes with a very Progressive approach, which perfectly fits this massive mix.
Predatory Void takes advantage of its musicians’ experience, making it a strength to give life to Seven Keys to the Discomfort of Being, its first album with a dark and very marked Sludge/Post-Metal identity, while easily navigating between its different influences.
90/100