The term Brutal Death Metal is a bit silly, isn’t it? We’re not like the regular death metal with all growling and blast beats. No, we’re somehow more extreme, some may say that we’re “brutal.” We’re death metal for folks who enjoyed the original Four Loko and Taco Bell breakfasts.

Belarus’ Ominous Scriptures is certainly going for the brutal approach on Rituals of Mass Self-Ignition (Willowtip Records). I mean if you’re going to start your album with something titled ‘Demonic Totem I Am’ then I guess you really have to live up to the “brutal” part. And the seemingly endless waves of double kicks and distorted guitars that encompass that number or other crushers like ‘Codex Rescriptus’ really drive that point home. 

But Ominous Scriptures’ problem seems that they are leaning in a bit too much into the brutality. First and foremost, we must address the mix and production as the best way to describe what’s roaring from the speakers here is lo-fi. This thing makes the death metal of the Morrisound era sound as clean and pristine as the opera. Judging by their playing these boys were clearly raised on that particular style of extreme but that doesn’t mean we have to literally party like it’s 1991. 

Alexandr Novitski gets the shortest end of the stick as his drums sound like they were tracked in an empty basement. He spends what feels like the majority of Rituals of Mass Self-Ignition rattling off blasts that never register with the concussive force they should.

Judging by the fact that bands on labels as niche as Unique Leader (not a knock on them in any sort of way) can have access to quality studio sound I can’t help but think that Ominous Scriptures intentionally went for a grittier aesthetic here. It’s just too bad as this pursuit of a more brutal sonic landscape really hampers what should’ve been a potential stormer like ‘Fanning the Flames.’

Can we retire the “brutal” descriptor yet? 

Buy the album here:

https://ominousscriptures.bandcamp.com/album/rituals-of-mass-self-ignition

6 / 10

HANS LOPEZ