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EMBLAZONED
The Living Magisterium EP

Deepsend (2013)
Rating: 6.5/10

Milwaukee, Wisconsin combo Emblazoned has been around since the late 90s but have only released one demo and two EPs in that time, including this latest EP, The Living Magisterium. Some would say this is a tad sporadic, and fans of these guys will no doubt want more releases after they’ve been bludgeoned by this five-track tome.

Emblazoned are a reasonably fierce death metal band who are very much of the mid to late 90s in their sound, but to be honest, I’m not sure where I stand with this type of groove.

Yep, it’s heavy and there are some fearsome double-tracked vocals with bass lines that disintegrate the spine and juggernaut drums that will remove your eyes from your sockets, but for the most part this is still very much a no frills affair that combines a great deal of speed with weight. Many may ask, what the hell is wrong with that? But my answer would be that such an outing could be deemed rather bland and there’s nothing on this EP that really stands out as being something special. I don’t expect bands to be original nowadays, but with so many acts mixing together guttural death metal and doomier black metal, Emblazoned will find it difficult to stand out in the crowd.

After the short intro of ‘Premonition’ we’re accosted by the hammering rhythms of ‘Extinction Of Creation’, a relentless skin-flayer of a track featuring harsh guitars, dual vocal growls and harsher rasps. Emblazoned shift effortlessly into mid-tempo groove and the drumming is king on this track, while the guitars deliver a chunky menace.

However, in spite of this being a catchy introduction to the band’s newer, slicker sound, it’s a no frills affair that leads us to the hurtling ‘Bound By Eternal Penance’. A truly fierce number featuring Deicide-styled vocal bellows and demented drums, it’s the old school wailing solo that really saves the day on this one, though. ‘Bound By Eternal Penance’ is easily the best track on offer here as there’s a lot more variety, although the outfit seem more comfortable with the racier elements which litter the furious ‘Refuge In Darkness’.

Of all the tracks, however, the one I see the most potential in is the closing ‘In Ex Cathedra’, which features a killer, catchy intro. Nonetheless, the listener is soon consumed by those harsher structures, with ex-Jungle Rot guitarist Kevin Forsythe really going for the jugular with those rampant riffs and distorted bludgeoning.

The Living Magisterium is a formidable record that boasts a little something for everyone who is a fan of black and death metal. I’m still unsure if it’s for me though; I find myself unmoved for long periods, leaving me to question as to whether I could put up with a full-length opus. Nevertheless, for those of you who’ve been waiting a long time for this, and also for those of you who like that modern, slamming brand of death metal, Emblazoned circa 2013 should be right up your street.

Neil Arnold

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