I have days where I swear I can’t do a single thing right on my own, and I wonder how I get from point A to point B without completely destroying myself. Maybe it’s my ADHD, or perhaps it’s something else, but when I see people who can multitask with ease, it’s sometimes infuriating. Why not me, damnit? That’s why I’m often mystified by bands made up of one single human being operating efficiently.

Hal Microutsicos is the sole force behind death metal power Engulf, and the way he manages to put everything together so seamlessly on debut full-length “The Dying Planet Weeps” is astounding to me. Over eight tracks and 36 minute, Microutsicos creates technically sound, devastating death metal that feels like a fluid being that’s just screaming to mutate into something else. By that I mean the sound of this record, as well as the three EPs that preceded it, hint that progression is something in its creator’s DNA, and as things continue to expand, I wonder where this band is at a few records down the road. It’s a pretty exciting thing to think about.

“Withered Suns Collapse” feels mystical when it dawns, and then the track tears apart, growls eating through stomach lining. The playing is brutal and ripping for the most part, save for some moments that are a little breezier, and then the snarling returns. The playing bends and warps as it does its damage, twisting your brain before fading. “Bellows From the Aether” chars and batters as the guitar work sweeps, and nasty howls lacerate, taking you into the heart of grimy hell. Ugliness bubbles over as the playing gets more violent, blasting out and leaving everything in the dust. “The Nefarious Hive” glistens as it starts, and then grisly howls pound away, the guitars streaming and picking up momentum. Later on, the melodies get disorienting, destroying as you’re overcome with power. “Ominous Grandeur” starts clean, feeling eerie, and as strange flames lick, the growls begin to gut, and the pace slows down but remains deadly. The menace multiplies as the tempo clobbers, shrieks smear and leave the room spinning, and the final gasp drills into your psyche.

“Lunar Scourge” heats up as the drumming destroys, guitars scorch, and crazed howls leave your flesh torched. The guitar work smears blood as the pace really gets trucking, inserting a piledriving force that mixes with vocal retching and infernal blasts. “Plagued Oblivion” opens with swirling riffs and tornadic force, the playing swaggering as it opens wounds. The speed clobbers as monstrous howls get into your bloodstream, picking up the intensity and driving you back, gasping for breath. “Earthbore” begins cloaked in mysterious steam as the playing explodes, and the melodies stymie. Beastly growls pummel as the leads heat up and boil over, taking control of the piece and soaring into the skies, enveloping everything in its presence. The swarming continues and makes the pressure insurmountable before bleeding into the instrumental title track. The guitars swell and glow, sometimes reaching into the mud, but the bulk of this is mysterious and spacey, ending the record in welcome strangeness.

Microutsicos runs an impressive operation with Engulf, and “The Dying Planet Weeps” is a strong first full-length record that hints at a project that’s going to morph and stretch from here. This album is well paced and ideally portioned, a strong gust of imaginative and scathing death metal that feels fresh and possibly from another part of the galaxy. More of this would be nice, though I have a feeling the next Engulf record might be a beast of an entirely different making.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/engulfdm/

To buy the album (U.S.), go here: https://www.nightshiftmerch.com/collections/everlasting-spew-records

Or here (Europe): https://everlastingspew.com/search?controller=search&orderby=position&orderway=desc&search_query=ENGULFTHEDYINGPLANETWEEPS&submit_search=

For more on the label, go here: https://everlastingspew.com/