Eternal Rot slithers again.
Formed in 2012 between England and Poland by Grindak (vocals/ lyrics) and Mayer (vocals/instruments), the band released a demo in 2013, followed by their debut album in 2018, before welcoming Psychoradek (Meat Spreader, Neuropathia, The Dead Goats, ex-Squash Bowels) on drums. In 2023, the trio released Moribund, their third album, on Memento Mori and Godz Ov War Productions.
Summoned from Moribund Delusions, the first composition, opens with relatively quiet and catchy drums, on which the thick heavy riffs, accompanied by cavernous howls, settle. Palm mute and morbid choruses join forces to feed this suffocating atmosphere, where the crushing saturation slowly moves forward to carry us away to Reflected in Perpetual Waves of Despair, which once again lets the terrifying voices express themselves while chaotic heaviness rages on. Although slightly shorter, the track remains just as effective, allowing the thick Death/Doom to express itself before Swollen Corpse Adoration hits us with a haunting sound which sometimes borrows its influences from Stoner before offering some massive aggressive accelerations. We also have some heady touches on leads, followed by Desecrated Guts and its occult introduction, which lets growls populate the quasi-religious chants calling forth the thick jerky riffs. Piercing leads and driving rhythms easily blend, leaving plenty of room for putrid vocal parts, just as on Gestures Never Recalled, which slightly picks the pace up before letting its Doom roots give riffs their impressive, muffled tones. A few disturbing tones add further relief to this wave of grease, which throws us into the dark Lurker in the Morgue, the final track, which is no exception, offering its fix of massive sonorities, whether thanks to an unhealthy but heady rhythm or the creepy death rattles.
Eternal Rot knows how to play to create a thick impenetrable sound, which they couple with heavy jerky patterns and unhealthy howls, making Moribound a true slice of auditive fatness.
85/100
