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PEST
The Crowning Horror

Agonia (2013)
Rating: 8/10

Sweden’s Pest has been involved in the black metal scene since 1997, although their first full-length opus didn’t emerge until 2003 under the title of Desecration. Hailing from Stockholm, Pest has, for most of its lifespan, consisted of two members: Necro (drums, guitars, vocals) and Equimanthorn (bass, guitars).

The Crowning Horror is the band’s fourth full-length album, and their first for Agonia Records. Those of you who’ve been privileged to experience Pest in the past will not be disappointed by another visit to the creaky realms of old school black metal.

It’s no surprise that the bassist is called Equimanthorn, as Pest’s vintage black ’n’ roll is very much of that punk-crusted Bathory (who had a song called ‘Equimanthorn’ on their 1987 opus, Under The Sign Of The Black Mark) style of evil; formidable yet refreshing and often groove-based too.

I’m sure the devilish duo won’t mind me saying that their oily brand of black metal is very much from the same dank basement as Darkthrone and Celtic Frost, but that’s not to say these guys sound like either of those legendary bands… far from it in fact. Pest has always been an underrated band who has bridged the gap between obscure 80s metal and the rawer but heavier gurgles of, say, Nifelheim.

Although the opening track, ‘The Funeral Hours’, is merely an atmospheric introduction, we’re soon under way into the realms of death with the sordid garage roughness of ‘A Face Obscured By Death’, which is the epitome of how real old school black metal should be played. The guitars are oily yet catchy and the drums reek of that vintage 80s metal stench, galloping at pace behind the grim yet accessible vocal sneer.

However, if it’s true metal you’re after, then look no further than the Iron Maiden-esque rumble of ‘Volcanic Eyes’, which has to be one of the best black metal songs I’ve heard for years. It brings to mind Darkthrone at their most nostalgic in those feisty rhythms, and Necro’s vocals are far more spiteful over those thrash riffs.

‘Devil’s Mark’ is equally joyous and fiery. It stomps in on an absolute killer buzzing riff and simple, stripped back drum, leading us into some stark, New Wave Of British Heavy Metal-styled groove. Fantastic stuff.

Pest are very much leaders of their field, but much ignored over the years, and yet what they are doing is combining that Venom / Bathory level of grimness with far catchier melodies, but all the while remaining malevolent.

‘Holocaust’ lives up to its name because it’s one of the album’s fastest tracks, a blitzkrieg of a number that rattles by on an unhealthy tin-can drum and Necro’s harsh rasps. It sounds like a track that never made Bathory’s ill-lit debut, such is its nefarious splendour.

The same could also be said for the ancient sounding ‘The Abomination Of The God’ and the threatening echoes of ‘Thirteen Chimes’. The latter is probably the only track on the opus that could have benefited from a few symphonic touches, but I’m ever thankful for its primitive appearance as the vocals become a watery growl.

There isn’t enough of this old school black metal about, as too many bands are jumping on bandwagons. If you like your music primal and stark but heavy and wicked all the same though, then The Crowning Horror should fill the gaps of Darkthrone inactivity, but also take you back to those claustrophobic days when Bathory ruled the earth and the nether regions. There’s no doubt that Pest are as black ’n’ roll as it gets.

Neil Arnold

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