Richard Benton will be satisfied with nothing less than carnage unrelenting, the sun black, the land drowned beneath oceans of blood.  Let the gates open wide and the horrors of the abyss engulf the earth, as new death metal albums were released in May.

After a solid but somewhat unspectacular debut, Cosmic Putrefaction have rapidly grown into something far more interesting than they suggested. Crepuscular Dirge For The Blessed Ones (Profound Lore), their third album and first for Profound Lore (a better fit than the normally death metal averse I, Voidhanger) is a powerful and engaging mix of cosmic death metal, at times calling to mind Nocturnus if they’d kept abreast of the genre’s recent directions.  Sparse but effective synth use enriches occasional trips beyond the stars, while the core of Cosmic Putrefaction’s aggressive songwriting keeps them from drifting too far.

You can buy Cosmic Putrefaction Crepuscular Dirge For The Blessed Ones here: https://profoundlorerecords.bandcamp.com/album/crepuscular-dirge-for-the-blessed-ones

Sometimes, you know what a band name was going for, but they didn’t quite get there.  Morgue Supplier might sound more “bulk-buy scalpels and disposable gloves” than “we kill people”, but Inevitability (Transcending Obscurity) leaves no doubt as to their intent.  Described on Metallum as death / grind, their sound is far more complex and engaging than that suggests – a frantic but strangely clinical flavour of abstract death metal utilising dissonance and empty spaces alongside annihilating blasts.  They’re not afraid to get trippy on tracks like ‘My Path To Hell’, but know when to pull it back too.

You can buy Morgue Supplier Inevitability here: https://morguesupplierband.bandcamp.com/album/inevitability-death-metal-grindcore

The use of indigenous instruments or themes in metal is normally associated with the wretch ghetto of “folk” metal or semi-successful Sepultura indulgences, but there have ben bands using it for darker purposes.  Tzompantli’s debut album Tlazcaltiliztli (20 Buck Spin) sees Xibalba frontman Brian Ortiz abandon the beat-down hardcore elements of that band to focus on savage, bloody-handed death metal with touches of doom.  The native instrumentation is mostly used to build up atmosphere between tracks, and while it would be interesting to hear them become a more integral part of the sound on future releases, the tension built up during intro ‘Yaohuehueti’ maximises the damage done by horrific first track proper ‘Tlatzintilli’ when it arrives.

You can buy Tzompantli Tlazcaltiliztli here:  https://listen.20buckspin.com/album/tlazcaltiliztli

I knew Mutilatred were going to make this list when I saw that Determined to Rot (Redefining Darkness) has a track called ‘Everyone’s Doing Shitty’.  In an age when Cannibal Corpse have a topical song, unvarnished honesty is suddenly one of the most death metal things you can do.  Brutal death metal normally leaves me bored, all volume over content, but there’s a filthy heft to Mutilatred’s sound that raises them above their peers, hollow “slams” replaced by a swampy surge.

You can buy Mutilatred Determined To Rot here: https://mutilatred.bandcamp.com/album/determined-to-rot

A confession – I have become worryingly obsessed with Encenathrakh’s third full length album, the characteristically titled Ithate Thingth Oceate (Self-Released) to the extent that it’s almost hard to talk about it as music.  Maintaining the sonic elements of death metal but abandoning every song-writing or compositional archetype the genre has ever had, Mick Barr and Colin Marston have trumped even their own insanely creative discographies with an album that has more in common with harsh noise or power electronics recreated for guitars, drums and vocals than any descendant of rock n’ roll.   If bands like Portal or later Altarage made you wonder where the riffs are, you should avoid Ithate Thingth Oceate at all costs – but if you have any interest in how far beyond its roots death metal can go and still be recognised as such, you may become as obsessed as I have.

You can buy Encenathrakh Ithate Thngth Oceate here: https://encenathrakh.bandcamp.com/album/ithate-thngth-oceate

RICHARD BENTON