BLOODTRUTH

Martyrium UNIQUE LEADER Italian death metallers move past mindless lip service

There’s only so far that a slavish dedication to 90s death metal tropes can take you, and Bloodtruth hit that creative ceiling long before the end of their 2014 debut, Obedience. Luckily, the band have taken that record’s standout moment – its hyperactive eponymous closer – and used it as the groundwork for the furious technical death metal that underpins this anti-ecclesiastical concept album. Clichés still groan through in parts – there are only so many church bell intros you can hear in one lifetime, after all – and the band’s use of Gregorian chants feels more akin to a liberal use of samples rather than a part of the record’s sonic DNA, but the sheer energy and creative vision of Martyrium ensures the ship is heading in the right direction to find exciting new shores.

FOR FANS OF: ABORTED, NILE, SUFFOCATION