out this week: Feral Lord - dissonant black metal from the U.S.

Feral Lord

Purity of Corruption

Vargheist Records

28 August 2021

Bandcamp says that black metal Feral Lord has on drums "Cave Ritual" (also known as: "SLK," "Plaguehammer," and "Jared Moran"), and on guitars, bass and vocals it is "Nythroth" (also known as "Nick Turner"). "Nythroth" and "Cave Ritual" are Feral Lord, and these two individuals are also another entity named Acausal Intrusion, tech-death, according to Metal Archives, which shows literally more than 60 other related projects. The duo is shrieking, fast, harsh and unmelodic, unpolished extremity. It is hard-driving, fast-charging, loud guitar but instead of the normal traits of black metal, like the thrashy, melodic and tremolo characteristics, it is nonlinear, contradictory sounds that do not seem harmonious or smooth. This is not totally dissonant guitar work, but it has some sideways vibes (maybe mathcore?), something that some black metal, avant-garde, and experimental bands are known to do. The vocals are shrieking screaming, and the drummer puts on a clinic. With a such hard-working drummer (from so many projects), this recording sounds rather different like the plastic, flaccid sound of sound replacement technology, sampled drumming and drum programming that is the norm in metal music. Extreme metal audiences interested in hearing an album that is wild, but also offers something different (something less traditional) may welcome the furies at work here.

Purity of Corruption by FERAL LORD