RSS Feed


MONOTHEIST
Scourge

Prosthetic (2018)
Rating: 8/10

Finally, some proper death metal! I was getting discouraged, questioning whether this genre was too fat with bands trying to reinvent the wheel, but when I hear Scourge, the debut album from Florida’s Monotheist, all is right with the world again.

I dig bands that come up with great original music, not afraid to stray away from the masses and risk something that maybe not a lot of folks would understand. Scourge is that record. This is solid death metal that isn’t afraid to tread into unlikely territory, as with ‘Mark Of The Beast 1: The Image (Prelude)’, a two minute sojourn into a gothic, classical realm only to rebound with the next song ‘Mark Of The Beast 2: Scion Of Darkness’, wrought with as much heaviness as one song can deliver. The vocals are to be heard, to be believed, and there’s a short passage where the term “guttural” takes on new meaning.

Whether it’s black metal or death metal or a combination of the two, I really dig it when it’s as good as this. It seems effortless, second nature in how masterful many, and I do mean many, of these musicians are when it comes to crafting lyrics to music, or vice versa. Scourge is a great example of this. Take the instrumental ‘Infinite Wisdom’. How does a death metal band pull this off? It’s almost prog metal and yet it fits the mood of this record to a tee without taking anything away from the heaviness factor.

I’m hoping this record gets heard, because it really deserves some serious attention. Each song flows into the next, and the music is perfectly layered and textured. Monotheist have really created something special here, weaving together a tapestry of heavy sounds that pummel you and alternately draw you in deeper into the songs themselves.

Thank God that Monotheist has decent label support in Prosthetic Records that can get their name out there. Give Scourge a listen, and also be sure to check out their 2013 EP, Genesis Of Perdition, which lay the foundation for what this latest effort is. You’ll thank me later.

Theron Moore

<< Back to Album & EP Reviews



Related Posts via Categories
Share