GROND – Howling from the Deep
- Posted on 28-11-2013
The 11 songs that constitute "Howling from the Deep", one of which is an Obituary cover, are all firmly rooted in rotten old-school death metal. Grond was vomited forth back in 2002 and the guys in the band certainly handle their instruments as if they`ve been playing for a long time.
Many of the riffs and melodies are pretty damn good and the deep, growling vocals serve the music well. I quite like the more screeching and nasty vocals that creep in here and there to compliment the main vocal lines. The band also manages to vary the songs quite a bit in terms of tempos and stuff like that, and the drummer and bass player form quite the solid rhythmic foundation. What makes "Howling from the Deep" a joy to listen to is that the riffs are damn good nearly all the way throughout the album. I`m almost left with the impression that having a catchy and atmospheric riff in each and every part of a song has been one of the band’s main focus points when writing the album. The guitar leads are also pretty strong. Just check out title track as well as "Infected Gods". The Obituary cover is pretty decent also, but nothing special as such.
The Lovecraftian lyrics and artwork are a joy to behold and the sound and production of the album is suitably raw and punchy. A recommended release for all you death/thrash-loving scum out there.