CHAOTIAN Effigies of Obsolescence CD

"From the murky depths of Denmarks death metal underground sprawls the abhorrent debut album of heavyweights Chaotian. Ambience seeps forth to begin our odious conquest into the sewerous depths, subtle but well suited to the murky death metal lying in wait. The interlinking whammy dives are sublimely old school and then chaos erupts. Hammering drums and filthy riffs launch directly into an avalanche of sepulchral filth with chunky bass tones breaking the mouldy mix along with gut-rupturing vocals. The convulsing grooves woven into warped spasms and pure old school battery gives a rather unique feeling to the music which is brutal, primitive and yet intricate with intensely skilful playing that steers clear of sounding sloppy or riddled with mistakes. Their drummer has an excellent method of being relentless but hitting extremely hard on the slower stomps to ensure maximum impact while the guitars and bass work in off-kilter unison to give sparse oddities to the dense mix of pummelling death metal. The vocalists guttural roars aren’t buried nor are they overbearing, sitting comfortably in amongst his bandmates where nothing is lost. Monolithic rhythm sections and cosmic riffs contort into bizarre shapes while the bludgeoning array of putrescent death metal morbidity retain a centre role in pounding pure vitriol into our skulls. Utilising their full dynamic range to magnificent effect, it is incredibly hard to poke flaws in the monstrous musicianship of Chaotian whose organic and yet inhuman soundscapes of charnel extremity leave no stone unturned. Burgeoning heaviness peaks and dips into doomy crawls before picking back up into bestial ferocity with seamless transitions. This natural and animalistic approach to songwriting is hugely beneficial to making this a gripping listen from start to end. Though murky and dismally dark in places, there is a clarity and focus to their sound which goes right for the jugular with a macabre aggression both unapologetic and restless. The constant movement from idea to idea never stagnates nor feels overzealous, something which will keep you on your toes throughout due to the impeccable volatile cascade of pristine riffing and varied drumming, tied together by some truly malignant vocal work. With barbarically heavy production and malformed, grotesque, splendid artwork to present such a grand full-length debut, everything is in place for this to cause utmost carnage to all whom seek it out, which I hope will be many of you! Containing all of the hallmarks of a fantastic underground death metal gem without feeling overtly manufactured or trying too hard, this is the sweet spot. You get all of the filth but from a natural source that packs so much into a forty minute debut while conciseness or subtlety is not lost either. Absolutely astounding work. Chaotian have been a consistently high quality force with their demos and EP all garnering respect in the death metal underground, their debut full length is no let-down. A putrid cacophony of rottenness and eldritch decay that seeps into many facets yet feels cohesive. This is a band who have refined their sound without losing themselves (or their filth) in the process. Written for www.nattskog.wordpress.com