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Plague Bearer - Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation - Reviewed By thoseonceloyal! Thursday April 27 2023, 3:15 PM

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Plague Bearer - Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation - Reviewed By thoseonceloyal ! Check it out here at this link: https://thoseonceloyal.wordpress.com/2023/04/24/review-plague-bearer-summoning-apocalyptic-devastation/

Review by Sandre the Giant

Described as a primitive blackened brother to Seattle death metal legends Drawn and Quartered, Plague Bearer were the original incarnation of D&Q, before being resurrected as a side project and staying that way for a long time. Despite a number of demos and EPs, they have never committed to a full length debut until now. ‘Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation’ is out now through Nameless Grave Records.

In case you weren’t sure what we were in for, opener ‘Unholy Satanic Black War Metal’ gives it away immediately, an uncomfortably dense song that surprised even me with its dynamic fury. Eastern melody slithers through the blasting drums and frenzied soloing, while throat shredding screams and growls add intensity and grit. There’s a suffocating shroud hanging over everything, dousing the flames of ‘Defiled by Sodomy’ and the serpentine riffs of ‘Churches Are in Flames’ in murk, choking and cloying. I get a lot of Impaled Nazarene in here, as well as a bit of Archgoat too, but Plague Bearer are also throwing some nice melodic sections in as well, see ‘Decapitated Angels’ as an example. A lot of black/death can feel a little samey, a little one dimensional these days, but I think Plague Bearer have got the balance right between mindless gibbering savagery and well constructed, intelligent songwriting. The pinnacle of this is the grim majesty of ‘In Satan’s Name’, where fury and obsidian elegance meet.

What Plague Bearer bring to the table is this overwhelming authenticity to their music, drawn from decades of experience and refinement. The rabid, disease encrusted riffs of ‘Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation’ are brought from a time before the newest waves of black/death bands, a primal time of aural violence that you can see the fruits of in places like the Chilean scene just now. But Plague Bearer are an original, and this record proves their skills are not rusty yet. thoseonceloyal

Release Date: March 3rd, 2023

FFO: Drawn and Quartered, Imprecation, Thy Infernal

Location: Seattle, WA

Born on the wings of pestilence out of a thirty year slumber, Plague Bearer rides into our diseased world with a vision of "Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation." Primarily known as a primitive blackened Satanic brother to Seattle death metal legends Drawn and Quartered, Plague Bearer have produced a string of underground demos and EPs over the years but never committed to a definitive full length until now. Nameless Grave Records presents "Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation," a devastating triple pronged vocal assault supported by brutal melodic riffing and pummeling drums heralding the end of this pathetic existence. The purpose of the band? The master of sixty hundred sixty six riffs has but one word: "Evil."

Plague Bearer in its most primordial form created death metal demos in '93 and '94, but lineup changes resulted in a rebranding to Drawn and Quartered in '96. Nevertheless, guitarist K (Drawn and Quartered, Draghkar, Serpent Rider) was determined to keep the Satanic flame alive, slowly amassing simpler, eviler blackened riffs with partner H (Drawn and Quartered, ex-Vetus Obscurum) and putting out a demo in 2001 and EP in 2006 with Nuclear Winter Records (Dead Congregation). In 2017, K and H reunited with long-time ally T on drums, along with vocalist Nihilist (ex-Abazagorath, ex-Lord Gore, ex-Thy Infernal), to infect the Pacific Northwest with live rituals.

From the first second, the album explodes into a orgy of double bass and crawling tremolo riffs in celebration of "Unholy Black Satanic War Metal." Although there is a clear lineage to be traced from the earliest days of extreme metal in Plague Bearer's sound, the music has slowly drifted through time untouched by modern trends. The sinister melodies of "Defiled by Sodomy" throb and groove in a hypnotic hymn to Lucifer, punctuated by stuttering double kick and cymbal flourishes. There is an unmistakable youth and vigor driving the album, and album closer "Christbane" bets it all on the stomping Satanic energy of its Venom-esque main riff.

The production of the album is clear without being sterile, allowing every instrument to freely breath and speak. Guitars, bass, and vocals were self-engineered at K's home studio The Plague Pit, while drums were recorded with Jon Schluckebier at Radioactive Recordings. Mixing duties were handled by Andrew Lee (Ripped to Shreds) at The W. Dungeon, and it was mastered by Loic of Krucyator Prod.

While "Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation" is laden with the legacies of its storied members, it never loses its individuality. Existing beyond the stylistic trappings of death and black metal, Plague Bearer raises a middle finger to the modern scene. Evil is the only way!

Full album streaming on YouTube!