Black metal obviously is perfectly suited for the winter, with the frigid weather and blanketing snowfalls that we don’t really get anymore where I live. Stay tuned for more original opinions. But Autumn is starting to feel like a great time for this style as decay spreads, cold winds whisper, and we can don our long sleeves again.

Cleveland black metal punishers Burial Oath feel a little more fiery than freezing, and their crushing third record “The Cycles of Suffering” is upon us, increasing the temperatures when we should be getting ready to shiver. The follow-up to 2018’s “Subjugation of the Bastard Son” ups the ante in a ridiculous way, storming out the gates and never looking back until all blood is shed. The band—vocalist Mor Grish, guitarist D, bassist R, drummer JV—uses seven tracks, and an economical 31 minutes to put you to the test, delivering destructive black metal that isn’t trying to arrest you with forestal imagery or mountain ranges and instead want to batter you to the pavement.

“Void Hunter” is humid when it starts, and then the playing blisters, melodic shrieks draped over the fury. Blackened hell erupts as the riffs rise and the vocals retch, letting the ferocious storm pummel and slowly slip away. “Deathbringer” delivers steaming riffs as an eruption pulls you under, the fires quickly lathering and foaming blood. The guitars enter a sudden fog, the playing then taking a turn and wrenching muscle, fires exploding and spitting chaos along the way. “The Cycles of Suffering” opens with ripping shrieks, a barnstorming pace that gets your attention in a hurry, and then some cooler tones let nerve endings tingle. The devastation continues at a punishing level, melodic guitars swimming through the muck, the drums slaying to a stunning finish.

“Howling Promethean Winds” is spacious but also mangling, guitars stampeding and making you see stars, leaving spatter behind. A blinding assault flattens as the screams envelope, guitars cascading to a spacious end. “Shadows Suspended in Dust” explodes as the drums gut, guitars sting, and the howls aim to bury you alive. Vicious blazes explode, but then calm takes over for a stretch, dripping but also hovering, then electricity rocketing, screams rippling to a burning end. “Pagan Fires” unloads with spiraling guitars, the drums rippling, screams mashing and creating brush burns. The force continues to squeeze, black metal-style melodies run roughshod, and everything comes to an immersive end. Closer “Kingdom of Fire” tears open, again digging back into the most evil forms of sound, speed crushing and doing so relentlessly. Grim howls churn as the vice grip only tightens around your throat, violent guitars slashing and dissolving into echo.

Burial Oath’s brand of black metal isn’t flashy necessarily, but it’s well played and will leave welts on the side of your head. “The Cycles of Suffering” is a massive step forward for this band (not that they weren’t firing on all cylinders before), and every second of this thing drills deep into your skull and makes you relish the pain. This is a slashing, fun listen, a record that hopefully will open more eyes and ears to their death-splashed power.

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

To buy the album, go here: https://shop.redefiningdarkness.com/

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