Veilburner (the mysterious, otherworldly duo of Mephisto Deleterio and Chrisom Infernium, are never shy of tying lore and mythology into their releases. Seven albums, seven tracks, and each of them seven minutes long. On The Duality of Decapitation and Wisdom (Transcending Obscurity Records) the pair pick up where they left off (both musically and conceptually) with 2022’s almost-eponymous VLBRNR. 

Musically that means you the listener are in for some Dissonant Death Metal that takes in elements of Black Metal, Thrash, Avantgarde, and whatever else the duo wish to pepper into their magical, bubbling cauldron of esoteric Extreme Metal. 

As always, the distinctive playing (and sonic treatment) of Mephisto’s guitars is key to the sonic presentation of the otherworldly, fantastical landscape that Veilburner have refined for the past ten years. After the thunderous opening of “Tem Ohp Ab in Mysticum”, with its pummelling programmed drums and see-sawing, pendulum riffing (like a demonic merry-go-round), “III Visions of Hex-Shaped Hiss, Behead the Howling Spirit” showcases some of the best, most infectious, hooks that the band has to offer. A twisting, fluid guitar motif swirls in and out, interwoven with great, syncopated riffing that (here and elsewhere) has a hint of Opeth at their Blackened Prog Metal best about it. 

Just as reliably impactful are the vocal performances of Chrisom. Between the delivery and the production, it often feels like there is a swirling maelstrom of voices ripping through the fabric of reality to howl, growl, scream, rage, roar and mutter in your ears — as though alien spirits have been summoned by the music and they’re looking for souls to tear to pieces. See “The Duality of Decapitation and Wisdom Part I” for some of the record’s most unhinged vocals. 

While you won’t necessarily be able to pick out much of what’s being said without a lyric sheet in front of you, the conceptual universe as explored in the lyrics is a major part of the complete Veilburner experience. You don’t need to fully immerse yourself in the lore to enjoy their records, but lines like, “There’s no past and now there is no predictable future until one understands that he who calls out the snake as evil is also the very same thing himself, spineless.” will give you an indication that there’s a whole fantastical world to be explored through the band’s words as much as their music. 

Although much of the album is sonically pummelling, you can always expect sonic twists and turns — a dreamy swing and guitar arpeggio that links the middle of the record and an ominous, slow, pounding intro to the album’s closing track (as if from the bows of an approaching Viking ship) are just a couple of examples. 

It’s a  wonderfully strange, shadowy well that this mysterious pair keep summoning their musical apparitions from, and with The Duality of Decapitation and Wisdom Veilburner seem as possessed by their spirits as ever. Lucky us.   

Buy the album here:
https://veilburnerband.bandcamp.com/album/the-duality-of-decapitation-and-wisdom 

9 / 10
TOM OSMAN
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