CRUCIAMENTUM – OBSIDIAN REFRACTIONS

(Some things in life are worth waiting for, and Andy Synn says that includes the new Cruciamentum)

Common consensus would tell you that 2023 has been a great year for Death Metal, and I… disagree.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not been a “bad” year, by any means, but I’ve found – and I know this will be controversial – that a lot of the so-called “great” albums of the year have been hugely overhyped, and I’m honestly worried that we’re right on the edge (if not already over it) of total oversaturation.

And while that might sound appealing to some, it seems to me that with more and more bands churning out these largely interchangeable slabs of slavishly retro-riffs and second-hand songwriting there’s becoming less and less that actually distinguishes them from one another with each passing month.

But, even so, there have still been some major bright spots here and there – albums have burned that little bit brighter, stood that little bit taller, and been that little bit bolder – and one of them, as you’re about to discover, is the new record from Cruciamentum.

What ultimately makes Obsidian Refractions such a stand-out album amidst a sea of undeniably solid, but largely unimaginative, sound-a-likes is its judicious use of malevolent melody and ominous atmosphere.

And while that’s not necessarily a major departure for the band – remember that their first album had its fair share of dramatic, Dismember-ish moments, and also wasn’t afraid to flirt with some sinister synths – it’s still a potentially contentious choice for a band in a genre that’s not always the most accepting of change.

Thankfully there’s no question (or, at least, there shouldn’t be) that the lurid, acid-laced leads and ever-present aura of grim grandeur infusing tracks like outstanding opener “Charnel Passages” and “Necropolis of Obsidian Mirrors” serve to effectively elevate the material to a whole other level (especially during the latter’s absolutely colossal climax).

Nor should there be any doubt that Cruciamentum are still more than capable of stripping the skin from your bones… and then grinding those bones into a fine particulate powder… since, beneath their gloomy, doom-laden atmospherics and swirling clouds of warped melody, both the aforementioned tracks are positively swarming with caustic, crookedly-catchy riffs, gargantuan, gore-soaked grooves, and punishingly primal percussive patterns.

More than that, there’s also a sense that the band’s newly tweaked formula – more than grim ‘n’ gnarly enough to satisfy the demands of the OSDM crowd, but possessing a more modern sharpness (and an increasingly “blackened” edge) that ensures it never sounds dated or derivative – has opened up all new avenues of potential and possibility, with the helter-skelter riffs and imperious intensity of “Abhorrence Evangelium” and the sinuous technical twists of “Scorn Manifestation” even recalling the best of pre-Cosmic Chaos Sulphur Aeon.

That’s something for the future though, and in the here-and-now it’s still worth pointing out that it’s not just the killer riffs and morbid melodies which make Obsidian Refractions such a masterful piece of work, there’s also the overarching sense of pacing and carefully considered structure of the album as a whole, something that makes it feel like more than just a simple collection of individual songs and which hints, more and more as the album goes on, at the calculated intelligence guiding the band’s collective hand.

Nowhere is this more apparent than during the album’s phenomenal finale, where the God Dethroned-esque barrage of ravenous riffs and blitzkrieg blastbeats which makes up “Interminable Rebirth of Abomination” sets the stage for titanic, ten minute closer “Drowned”, whose epic proportions (and equally “epic” atmospheric ambitions”) give the group the space they need to expand and explore their deathly dynamic – equal parts bellicose and brooding, harrowing and haunting – to its fullest extent in a way which feels utterly, and justifiably earned in the light of everything which has gone before it.

Make no mistake, Cruciamentum may have arrived fashionably late to the party this year, but when you make an entrance this good you can pretty much guarantee that yours is the only name people are going to want to talk about… and with damn good reason!