Antropomorphia breaks through the darkness with its sixth album.
Despite some rather quiet years, Ferry Damen (vocals/guitar), Jeroen Pleunis (bass, ex-Villainy), Marco Stubbe (drums, Flesh Made Sin) and Jos van den Brand (guitar, Acrostichon, Razend) sign up with Testimony Records to unveil Devoid of Light.
The Withering Stench of Hope strikes first, presenting us with a sound rooted in solid Death Metal and complemented by massive vocal parts, but which doesn’t hesitate to regularly dip into Black Metal to reinforce its ferocity. The bloody solo perfectly complements the raw sound, then Devoid of Light takes over with its emphasis on piercing leads, while the rhythm section unleashes its double-pedal fury under Ferry‘s cavernous vociferations. Funeral Throne follows with a latent ferocity that only takes a few seconds to rattle our skulls thanks to a wild Old School approach, then In Writhing Rapture envelops us in its tenebrous mist before slowly molesting us. The harmonics remain present throughout the track, falling silent only to let the acceleration hit before leading us to Cancerous Bane where the atmosphere is relatively heavy, almost even strange between two more direct and brutal parts. The sound becomes very mysterious again with the introduction of Unending Hunt, but the band soon reverts to their usual violence, sometimes with heady melodies that always combine naturally with solid riffs, as on Ash Drapes the Earth, which plays mainly fast, yet knows how to slow down to weave in anguished leads. In the Shade of the Devil’s Horns will create an imposing, almost majestic atmosphere before releasing the reins, making the track extremely catchy before moving on to a sample of decay, then the final solo before Triumphant Death, which will revive a heavy slowness while giving it a rather epic touch throughout this final composition.
Violence sounds so obvious for Antropomorphia, and after an absence of some time, they have come up with an excellent album. Devoid of Light skilfully blends massive sounds with a very dark and sometimes even Old School approach.
90/100
A few questions to Ferry Damen, founder guitarist/vocalist for the band AntropomorphiA, about the band’s new album Devoid of Light.
Hello Ferry and first of all thank you very much for your time! How could you introduce the band Antropomorphia without using the usual Metal labels, such as “Death Metal” or its subgenres?
Ferry Damen (vocals/guitar): A boundless unrelenting pestilential force.
Where does the name Antropomorphia come from, and how do you link it to your band’s music?
Ferry: It’s comes from the tradition, where bands name their band after a song from a band or album, ours is from the first Pestilence album.
The band is about to release its new album Devoid of Light. How do you feel about it? How is the feedback so far?
Ferry: The feedback has been very positive, we’ve been getting good reviews so far. How I feel about it? Well I would not release an album if I didn’t stand behind and didn’t think it was good. I hate to fall into clichés but I do think it’s the most complete and best work we ever released.
How would you sum Devoid of Light’s identity up in only three words?
Ferry: Malefic, dark and impious.
How did the creation process happen for Devoid of Light? Did you notice any differences compared to the band’s previous works?
Ferry: After the pandemic became background noise, we were able to do some shows, from these shows, and watching the herd mentality and the chaos during this pandemic, creativity presented itself. Having found this connection I started working intensively on these new musical incantations. Having several ideas and fully formed songs, Jos and I started to develop these ideas and songs. With Jos having a major influence on the setting of the atmosphere of the album with his guitar playing. Then some personal issues arose, making me not being able to record or write for almost a year. Somewhere early 2023 we continued on this journey which ended in July of 2024, that’s when we finished all the recordings. The album was done for quite awhile but with the whole finding a new label and the time it takes for a label to plan a release adds another 10 months to the process.
The band’s sound is anchored in Death Metal but with an oppressive violence, how do you manage to create your own touch? Which bands would you quote as the most inspiring for Antropomorphia and did they change with time?
Ferry: When I was 15-16 I was heavily inspired by Hellhammer/Celtic Frost and bands like Death and Autopsy. As you grow as a musician you tend to broaden the musical horizon. So I listen to lot of different musical genres, I’m not confined to Metal. It’s logical that some of it seeps through in my writing but that would be an accumulation of all those styles and genres and I tend to find most of the inspiration within our own band.
Is there a concept on Devoid of Light? How did you decide about which songs to release to introduce the album?
Ferry: It’s not a concept album, each song has its own theme and story. When we finished the album we looked for those songs that together display the diversity of the album.
Do you have a favorite song on this album? Or maybe the hardest one to achieve.
Ferry: I don’t have a favorite but there’s one that was the hardest to finish, namely Cancerous Bane. I started writing it a few weeks after a friend died, in May 2019. A version of the verse riff was there rather quick and we had the atmosphere of the chorus theme presented itself in an early phase of the writing. It was that verse riff that would become the biggest struggle, I have many versions of it and some were great but didn’t carry that what I wanted for the song, what that was I didn’t know, once you have it you’ll feel and know instantly but that took a while, I finally finished it a week before going in the studio.
Where do you find your inspiration to create music and lyrics?
Ferry: Life, all its forms.. depression, sadness, hatred etc etc.
Do you think you improved yourself as a musician and songwriter with this new record?
Ferry: Yes.
What were the guidelines for Devoid of Light’s cover art? Who’s the artist and how did you reach this person?
Ferry: The artist is Richard Schouten (former Acrostichon guitarist) which we all know from those days. I briefly was in a band with him called : The Church of Lords. He’s an amazing painter, so when still in the demo phase I presented him the lyrical themes and material, he had no other guidelines and was free to create what he saw and felt with what was presented and he came up with a sketch which fitted perfectly with what we were doing.
Devoid of Light marks your first collaboration with Testimony Records, how is it to work with them?
Ferry: Like any new relationship it had a phase of getting to know each other and our way. But Thomas (label owner) is a great guy with a guide love for music and we are pleased to be a part of Testimony Records.
I unfortunately never had the opportunity to see Antropomorphia on stage, so how could you describe a live show? Maybe you have some habits, or “pre-show rituals”?
Ferry: Unrelenting with a tangible darkness, drenched in a stench of death.
What will happen in the next months for Antropomorphia?
Ferry: Can’t talk about that at this point.
Are there any musicians or artists you would still like to collaborate with in the future for Antropomorphia? Whether it is for one song, or maybe more.
Ferry: Not at this point.
If you had to organize a concert for Devoid of Light’s release show, which bands would you love to play with? I let you create a poster with Antropomorphia and three other bands! Even unrealistic answers are accepted.
Ferry: We just had our release show and we had Messor Falce and Deathless Void as our guests on the bill.
That was the last question for me, so thank you very much for your time and your music for all those years, last words are yours!
Ferry: Thanks to you and those reading this.