When thinking about Austrian Death Metal, the majority of us reading this will think of bands like Pungent Stench, Disharmonic Orchestra, Disastrous Murmur or perhaps Miasma. But recently something seems to be brewing again in that Alpine nation, recently I reviewed Fessus’ first demo and also conducted an interview with them. And now there’s this new quartet, Cryptal Echoes also appearing out of nowhere. Despite the fact that both bands do play a predominantly different style of Death Metal, there is also a parallel to be drawn.
This self-titled demo, or EP if you will, clocks in just under the half hour mark and offers six tracks of something that can be found exactly midpoint between old school Doom/Death Metal and a more modern approach of the genre. Although using familiar elements from yesteryear together with more refreshing modern take, that is more or less where the comparison with Fessus ends. Cryptal Echoes has a distinctly different approach to the genre that can be typified by dizzying dynamics, something that most of their contemporaries lack.
Cryptal Echoes serves you a sort of Doom/Death Metal that is free from any romanticism that is offered by the Swallow The Suns or My Dying Brides of this world. In fact, this is better to classified as Death/Doom, as the emphasis is clearly been laid to the Death Metal elements here. But it is the aforementioned great dynamics that makes these recordings so appealing, they go from a sluggish pace, combined with eerie guitar melodies, to thunderous bursts that do remind a bit of very early grinding Bolt Thrower (check the closing part of the closing track for instance). Mix in those nasty growls and creepy shrieks and you have a complete picture of what Cryptal Echoes is able to put to the table: some unadulterated Death/Doom Metal that is very much worth your attention.
