Things don’t always end happily, despite a large portion of fictional tales tending to skew in that direction. It’s not an accurate reflection of life, when very often things don’t resolve in a glistening, soundtrack-ready situation where everyone involved gets what they want, and the hero prevails. There’s often no hero. Just people navigating life.    

“Since You Left These Shores,” the second full-length from German black metal duo A Somber Funeral (vocalist/bassist/synth player Chris R., guitarist/drummer Alex J.), defies convention and lets sorrow, longing, and regret take hold in the end. This 10-track, hourlong album tells the story of a boy and girl who forge a strong bond only to be pulled apart by life, sent to take different paths. Unbeknownst to the boy, the girl succumbs to loneliness and takes her own life, and he lives always wondering about her fate, which never is revealed to him. The heartbreak, unspoken feelings, and mystery are woven into these songs, making you feel every twist in their journeys. The record does feel a tad long, the music not veering far enough away from their formula and lacking a bit of variety. That said, the songs are quite good, and perhaps digesting it in chunks is the way to go. They also add a handful of guests to add vocals throughout the record, which we detail below.

“You Left Me In My Hardest Time” thunders open, melodies rushing, howls carving into your psyche, blistering into an emerging calm. The terrain gets misty as synth layers fall, and then things erupt, growls barrel down, and the playing glisten untils a final jolt. “Maybe She’s Dreaming” features Winterherz from Waldgefluster, and it storms in, strings drizzling, the emotion exploding in your chest, vocals gurgling over a storming pace. The playing is grisly and colorful, darkness gushing as the energy loops, a heartfelt push making blood rush. “Like An Autumn Leaf” features Jake Superchi of Uada, and it attacs with raw tenacity, strings glowing, clean singing warbling under the din. Shrieks ripple as the playing brawls back, injecting spacious power, getting catchy and jostling, burning off into the distance. “Mourning Years” has drums bleeding in, gazey guitars welling like lava, torching with fluid playing and fiery growls that claw at the walls. The pace spills harder before settling, the strings glide, and then the growls rejoin, melody firing glorious energy. “An Eternal Traveler” has howls grasping and an effusive attack flooding, the playing decimating as the vocals gush passion. Howls batter as the speed becomes a greater factor, blazing away and ending in ash. 

“Forsaken Youth” brings in Aleevok from Belore to guest, mist encompassing the environment like early morning, howls stabbing into murk, punchy, infectious playing making your heart come alive. The singing soars as wails inject more muscle, everything storming to a massive end. “Light of Big Cities” bursts open, growls scraping, a punchy pace melting into mangling gurgles, the tempo battling harder. Guitars hit a spiral as the playing sprawls, sweeping everything up with it, the drums destroying before an abrupt end. “Crossroad Without Encounter” captures the momentum, howls smearing as the fuel bubbles and drips, the melodies carving pathways into the woods. The vocals sound more like a story recitation, moodiness thickens and increases cloud coverage, the metallic destruction increases before rushing off. “The Sailor” features Petar Yordanov or Vorga, and it opens with waves crashing, the pace launching and growls crackling as the leads cascade into fascinating frosty terrain. Spoken cries dig into your brain as shrieks return in full, mangling and adding pressure before entering a blur.  “Since I Left Those Shores” ends the record and is the longest track here at 9:54. It also adds new life to the album. Faidra guests here, and the first half feels like a storyteller vocally, shrieks bubbling as an epic journey takes over your brain. The call of, “I’m forever without you!” hammers down your spine, the pace settling into calmer waters, synth and strings adding more texture, punches eventually landing again. Leads soar and set fire to your mind before the energy slowly fades, loosening its grip and slipping beneath the waves. ‘

“Since You Left These Shores” is a heart-wrenching, harrowing journey of two souls separated and taking different paths that sadly don’t lead back to each other. A Somber Funeral slather their hearts all over these songs, and while this collection might work a little better at, say, eight tracks, obviously every song was vital to the story they tell. It’s an album that might be better digested in parts, but that doesn’t take away from its power and beauty delivered generously.

For more on the band, go here: https://asomberfuneral.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://fiadh.bandcamp.com/album/since-you-left-these-shores

Or here: https://asomberfuneral.bandcamp.com/album/since-you-left-these-shores

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

And here: https://silentwatcherrecords.bandcamp.com/

There were real questions at points in the past as to how death metal would sound decades after its birth and if older musicians still would be able to pull of such savagery. We now know the answer is a definitive positive for both, and that the musicians who comprise this sub-genre are made up of stronger material than most.

Monstrosity is one of those bands that carried the banner from the early days right up to now on their latest record “Screams From Beneath the Surface,” their seventh and first in eight years. The band—vocalist Ed Webb, guitarist Matt Barnes, bassist Mark Van Erp, drummer Lee Harrison—is channeled, heavy, and destructive on these 10 tracks, sounding as thunderous as ever. Their debut album may have come out in 1992, but they show no wear and tear here, roaring like a death metal beast that has a belly full of fire.

“Banished to the Skies” gets the record off to a tempered start, though it’s still quite heavy. Guitars launch as the vocals boil, a classic metal-style assault launching in full. Strong soloing blazes as Webb’s growls feel raw and meaty, the playing echoing and dripping away. “The Colossal Rage” is a wrecking machine out of the gates, growls mauling as the leads surround you. The tempo pounds away as the guitars speed dangerously, the flames scorching flesh as Webb howls, “Colossal rage will end your life!” “The Atrophied” chugs, the vocals mashing and then morphing into screams. Leads sprawl as fists batter your gut, soloing twists brain wiring and bleeds with force, the playing carving away at your bones. “Spiral” has guitars attacking and screams lashing, the pace pulling back a bit but remaining devastating, the leads melting. “Now you have to die,” Webb declares, the guitars going off, speeding into the fog. “Fortunes Engraved in Blood” thrashes and mangles, the growls choke, and the leads jolt and warp. Dueling melodies storm harder, the growls claw at throats, and the channeled pace makes blood race through your veins.

“Vapors” is an onslaught, guitars chewing as growls curdle, the drums leaving everything in the dust. The simple chorus rips hard, infernal heat blasting with fury, the final moments piledriving through the earth’s crust. “The Thorns” heats up and lands stiff body blows, the growls spitting as if spraying poisoned words. The aura gets atmospheric as the soloing ratchets up the intensity, the growls wrestling you to the dirt. “Blood Works” opens with the drums mashing, speedy riffs blinding, the path going a little progressive. Speed ruptures as the thrashier charges challenge your muscles, stomping harder and leaving no skull unsquashed. “The Dark Aura” punches in, and then the pace gets more deliberate, bathing in flames as doomier colors dash across the sky. Howls stretch as dust coats lungs, Webb howling about the “demise of the universe” as the final moments bubble into time. Closer “Veil of Disillusion” engulfs as the growls rumble, the guitars turning nuclear as the surroundings get muggier. Leads swim as the howls retch, humidity continuing to skyrocket, the drums mounting one more assault and driving in the final nail.

Monstrosity survived a lot in their almost half a century as a band, and the fact that “Screams From Beneath the Surface” is this solid is a testament to them. Death metal has branched off in so many directions that playing it straight seems ill advised. But Monstrosity prove that isn’t true. This is as real as anything, and this record stands as evidence that sometimes the veterans actually know what’s best.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.monstrosity.us/

To buy the album (U.S.), go here: https://metalblade.indiemerch.com/

Or here (Europe): https://shop.metalblade.de/

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