Asphyx

By Júlio Valada on Jan 24, 2012 in Cd Review | 0 comments

Album: Deathhammer
Label: Century Media
Tracks: 10
Release Date: February 27th
Length: 47′ 35”

Riff Score: 9.0/10

The Dutch behemoths of death and doom are back, again with the mighty roar of Martin van Drunen leading the way. Deathhammer is their eighth studio album and marks the band’s 25th birthday.

The Netherlands are one of those countries in the metal world which everybody knows due to having their fair share of famous and worldly renowned acts, and yet it still carries a sense and feeling of being just another small European country with little importance in the global schematics of all things metal. People who are less aware of this country’s musical output in extreme metal for the past twenty years may regard it as the home of Pestilence, Sinister and The Gathering; but a lot more is resting below the surface, waiting to be unearthed and again sow misery and fury into the world we know. Historically people refer to the death/doom scene mainly because of its British variant, the “Peaceville Three” and all of that. But what many of them are unaware is that the Dutch scene is contemporary and in some cases even precedes some of the major releases from the British scene. Bands like Delirium and Sempiternal Deathreign had already put out records in 1990 and the later had The Spooky Gloom released as far back as 1989! The doomed seeds planted by Hellhammer and Celtic Frost had infected the neighboring regions on Europe and their influence was slowly creeping inside the minds of many young musicians in that small orange country so famous for its tulips.

It was in this newfound world and in the blasting slow motion of the early nineties that Asphyx came to be an untold legend. They released their debut, The Rack, in 1991 through the same Century Media that now, twenty-one years later, harbors their triumphant return after a much vaunted comeback only three years ago with Death…The Brutal Way. A long time has passed since the inception of the band and again Martin van Drunen sits at the wheel of what continues to be a well oiled and crushing death metal act, still keeping an eye open for long crawling passages over the empty battlefield to scavenge on the remains of its enemies. Deathhammer comes as a statement, a sort of wake up call to a world where old school seems to be on an upheaval ride for glory in the latest years, and it comes to say that there’s enough quality and brutality in being and acting simple. You don’t need to be the fastest shredder alive or land fifteen snare hits every second to be brutal and unrelenting, not when a simple and barebones act that brings us back to the basics in an early nineties style manages to be much more brutal than 90% of the new metal acts. The metal world of this new millennium is slowly catching up to this strange idea and what best of an example than to listen to an actual band from that period, playing in the style that they helped develop?!

Asphyx come again as they had done in the past, in a military stench of burnt oil and gunpowder, uniforms painted in shrapnel and blood with a savage and roaring mad man crying out heaps of fury and tragedy. It’s in that infuriated and adrenaline pumped fashion that the album starts the devastating opener “Into The Timewastes” and the infectiously catchy title track. Both are short bursting pieces of salvo-like machine gun fire with the first having a great breakdown at the end of the first minute, grinding away before it explodes again, while the second is the single most catchy song they’ve written since “Abomination Echoes”. It’s just impossible to remain impervious to it and not shout along the chorus while banging your head like a maniac. The album then falls into the first of its longer pieces which are more doom oriented, and “Minefield” is utterly devastating in its petrifying delivery, even bringing to mind some thoughts of Hail Of Bullets. The album then continues to wreak havoc in this same fashion for the remaining tracks, shifting between rapid fire bursts of violence like the brothers in arms “Reign Of The Brute” and “Vespa Cabro”, that clearly show the influence of Morbid Tales, and slow grinding doom-laden tank maneuvers that render the battlefield an inhabitable place. Tracks like “Der Landser” and “We Doom You To Death” employ these scare tactics very proficiently as their slow paced piercing riffs entice you more and more into a catatonic state of headbanging. The ever present military feel is unavoidable and these slow burners are the perfect example of what an empty shelled battlefield should’ve looked like in the Great Wars.

The closer “As The Magma Mammoth Rises” is the longest track of the album, acting as judge, jury and executioner for all the war crimes committed prior, and it’s hard to become indifferent to its uncompromising toll. With nearly eight minutes of an asphyxiating miasma of slow riffing and tortured screams, it still packs some hefty surprises like the bombastic turn of the fourth minute that catches you by the throat and totally unaware. For those questioning Paul Baayens placing at the axe this one should dissolve all doubts of his abilities. The production lets the heavy and choking scent of dead crushed bodies come to you in full force and the mighty throat of Martin van Drunen is as good as it was twenty years ago.

This album comes into the metal world ripping and tearing apart all that stands in its way, and the timing of its release couldn’t have been more perfect. The resurrection of old school death metal has been a trend in the past years and it’s in this newfound love and appreciation for the days of yore that Asphyx releases one of their best albums so far. I’d go as far as to say that Deathhammer reminds me a lot and even manages to rival with their 1992 opus, Last One On Earth. This is a great slab of death and doom and it clearly shows that a band only needs quality riffs and a good dose of writing skill to perform brutal and extreme music. In an age of imitators and wannabe retro bands I seriously advise you to check out the real deal, with this record being an excellent starting point in your journey. Asphyx continues to make their name count and Deathhammer is bound to become a fan favourite. Now taste the steel and bow down to the Deathhamer!

Review by Júlio Valada

By: Júlio Valada