(written by Islander)
Samiarus took shape in the SF Bay Area among current and past members of Abnutivum, Meth Sores, Flesh Dungeon, Doomsday, Slaughteruin, Abstracter, and Mentor. The name they chose was intended as a reference to “the Arabic name of the leader of the Watchers in apocryphal abrahamic scriptures, a rebel angel who shared knowledge with men and birthed the Nephilim, becoming a danger to divine power and law and turning into the absolute usurper.”
First impressions of their black/death terrors arose from their Demonstration demo, released in January of this year, which included one original song, a cover of Absu‘s “Descent to Acheron”, and a recording of a live rehearsal. It brought to mind full-blown war zones, episodes of unhinged violence and splintering sanity, but infiltrated by ingredients not wholly dependent on antecedents like Blasphemy and Archgoat.
Now we have a Samiarus EP looming ahead of us, a 23-minute onslaught named Reign Destroyer that will be released by Sentient Ruin on April 25th. What we have for you today is the premiere of one of its 7 tracks, “Crushed By Inferior“.
The war metal formulation of black/death is still a prominent influence on the EP, but (as Sentient Ruin explains) its musical upheavals are also fueled by the punk and hardcore rebelliousness of such bands as G.I.S.M., Doom, Raw Nerve, Cult Ritual, Discharge, and Siege, as well as from some of the band members’ interest in certain strains of industrial and noise music.
In the song you’re about to hear, Samiarus mount a malignant and mauling assault on the senses, a slaughtering charge driven by percussive mortar barrages that pump like pistons, thundering bass lines, maliciously scathing riffage, ecstatically freaked-out lead guitars (shrill and screaming in tone), and a cruel collage of imperious growls, guttural roars, and maddened howls.
But Samiarus also twist and turn in their ruinous rages. The guitars abrasively churn and insanely writhe, but also become cold and dismally whining, and in the more punk-fueled part of the song they slash. The drums hammer, tumble, and rock. The lead guitars flicker and spasm in vivid displays of insane jubilation, like some transformer that has shorted out and relishes its mad spray of sparks on whomever is below.
The song proves to be as diabolically twisted as it is a remorseless infliction of carnage.
Reign Destroyer was recorded by Carlos Cruz in Oakland, mixed by Steven Henningsgard, and mastered by Will Killingsworth. Sentient Ruin will provide the release on vinyl LP, CD, cassette tape, and digital formats. At Bandcamp you’ll also be able to stream two other previously released songs from the EP, “New Iron Age” and “Eradicating Wind“.
PRE-ORDER:
https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/album/reign-destroyer
https://sentientruin.com/releases/samiarus-reign-destroyer
SAMIARUS:
https://samiarus.bandcamp.com