Disma & Miasmal – 2011’s Death Metal World Champions

We’re still in October fellows, but 2011’s world champions, in terms of Death Metal, have already been revealed. In fact, we’ve known the winners for months, probably since May. By that time, Miasmal had just released its first self-titled album and Disma was only recording its debut, Towards The Megalith.

And the 2011 Death Metal Champions are... DISMA & MIASMAL!

These two bands are completely different. Disma hails from the US and was formed by former Incantation and Funebrarum members. Needless to say the expectations were high, and everyone was anticipating the debut album, that just HAD to be tremendous. A few months before releasing that first record, the band was involved in a fabulous 7” Split with Winterwolf. The vinyl was released via Doometia Records and had that AWESOME artwork. Now as you imagine, everything was set for Death Metal fans to witness the birth of a dominating Death Metal band. Especially that the demo called The Vault Of Membros released in 2009 had a massive impact on the underground.

Now is this a fantastic artwork or is this a fantastic artwork? 

And yes, no one was disappointed when they heard “Of A Past Forlorn” on the split EP with Winterwolf. And when the album came out, with it’s superb artwork, on Profound Lore (another “hype” factor) everyone agreed that this would be this year’s best Death Metal record.

Musically speaking, we should even say DOOM Death Metal. Disma’s music is unbelievably massive, not always slow though as there are some pretty frantic accelerations here and there. I think the main word is DYNAMIC. And there’s nothing more important that dynamic when it comes to extreme music. The headbanging is mandatory, you just can’t help it, the sound is oh-so heavy and there is some kind of awesome and creepy atmosphere that totally fits the band's ambition in terms of "concept" (artwork and lyrics). 

Yes, the artwork is just as cool as the music

All in all that record makes me think of a better version of Runemagick. Really dominating and powerful stuff. I can't pick up a specific favorite song on this one, but you guys must try and listen to the awesome “Chasm Of Oceanus”, “Lost In A Burial Fog” or “Towards The Megalith” (not to mention the already known "Of A Past Forlorn").

  

The other 2011 champion is more surprising. Miasmal hail from Gothenburg, Sweden and they have released their first CD on Dark Descent Records in May. From the first listen I knew that Miasmal was a special CD. In fact, the first 2 minutes from opening track "Mesmerized" are enough to tell you how fantastic this band is. The atmosphere is creepy, humid. Feels like the music has really been recorded in some cave. The drums groove like hell and the fast riff will blow your head away.

Swedish Death Metal at its best! 

The album is a succession of instant hits, and each track stands out in it’s own way. Some tracks like “Mists” or “Death Mask” are just irresistible. The album is just as great as Disma’s and it’s impossible to determine which one is stronger, especially that Miasmal is more typically Scandinavian. Also note that the CD version of the album includes the tracks from the sold-out band's demo. 14 tracks of pure Death Metal pleasure. 

These two CDs are just the illustration of what old-school Death Metal should sound like, and they are just perfect in their own way. 

You like Death Metal? Then there is no way you can miss any of these two amazing releases.

Now before some of you start insulting me, note that I have picked 2 new bands. But of course, one must not forget to mention the godfathers, as most of them are still around. And no, Im not going to discuss the controversial Morbid Angel record. This year, in my opinion, another death metal pioneer was back with an unbelieavable release: AUTOPSY. What a return! Filthy, raw, heavy, doomy and totally insane: that’s how Macabre Eternal sounds like. The final track, "Sadistic Gratification" is completely insane, and Reifert’s voice is just like the Devil himself is whispering in your ears.

Young wolves are taking over? Maybe, but some of the Godfathers are still hungry!

Now that said, who still believes that Death Metal ain’t what it used to be??? It’s still Alive (or Dead shall we say) and VERY WELL! 

Today's history subject: Phlegethon

In Greek mythology, Phlegethon is one of the five rivers in the underworld. Yeah, the ones ruled by Hades, with the burning flames and stuff. The other four are called Styx, Lethe, Cocytus and Acheron (other Metal bands as well). It is said that Styx was in love with Phlegethon, but she was consumed by its flames and also sent to the underworld and Hades.

That was the Greek History lesson. Now let’s get to the cool story, the one about Finnish Death Metal.

Phlegethon is one of the first and most respected Finnish Death Metal bands. And if you have no idea was Finnish Death Metal is, just remember that it’s pretty similar to its Swedish cousin, but it sounds a little darker and it evolved into something slower and pretty much doom-like.

Phlegethon was formed and recorded some demos in the late 80s, before releasing their only official production, an EP called Fresco Lungs in 1991. But the band disappeared shortly after that release; according to leader Lasse Pyykkö; because they’d lost their inspiration. They reformed briefly in the early 2000s and recorded a few new demos that inspired Lasse Pyykkö to form other bands. And so Phlegethon was put on hold again…

The good news is that two years ago, Xtreem Records released Drifting In The Crypt a double CD compilation that features just about everything Phlegethon ever recorded. Just like the Spanish label did with Funebre’s Children Of The Scorn a few years ago. Label boss Dave Rotten (!!) really is a Death Metal maniac, you have to thank the man for these awesome releases.

Funebre's Children Of The Scorn: The other Finnish Death Metal classic

I’m not going into the details of “what sounds like what” and about “why this demo sounds cooler than this one” simply because in this CD’s booklet, you’ll find a fantastic interview of Lasse Pyykkö conducted by one of Death Metal’s finest specialists, Oliver “Zoltar” Badin. They’ll tell you everything you need to know about Phlegethon and about each one of the recordings.

Phlegethon's complete discography on this 2CD compilation out on Xtreem Records

Briefly though, note that CD1 contains the 1989 & '90 demos, and that they sound pretty much like all of the early European Death Metal demos: harsh, raw, very clumsy and very Slayer-like. They also have that insane and freaky atmosphere that made this period so special. Nothing really outstanding here, just another pioneer Death Metal band, with a taste for twisted riffs and weird song names (“Encapsulation Of The Ark Of The Covenant”). This latter song is probably their best song ever by the way; almost 10 minutes of insane thrash/death Metal riffing and a bunch of cool melodies.

Promo 95 on Disc 1 is a joke. Somehow in the 90s, some bands thought that mixing rock and Death sounded cool. They called it “Death Rock” and some bands actually released well-known records. Remember Carcass’s horrible Swansong? Or Blackstars’s self-titled?

Strange song names and also strange artworks...

CD2 is a little bit more interesting as it contains the famous Fresco Lungs EP, which pretty much sounds like the demos, but with everything being much better. Obviously better sound, but also better musicianship. Some old songs were re-recorded, like the fantastic “Ornaments” or the aforementioned “Encapsulation Of The Ark Of The Covenant” (still didn’t get that name!). You also get to listen to 2 bonus songs released back then, very doomy and Sabbath-like “Stone Me” and the weird techno-shitty one “Without Tea Waters”.

But things really get interesting with the 2006, '07 & '08 demos. With all the old-school Death Metal revival that went on, Phlegethon reunited and recorded a couple of new songs that show that they still ruled, and that their cult status isn’t an accident. The awesome riffs are still here and so are the twisted melodies. Really outstanding Death/Thrash Metal.

It’s a shame the band didn’t reform long enough to actually release some official new material. However, this experience was exiting enough to restart Lasse Pyykkö’s inspiration. This guy is a Death and Doom metal maniac and he soon started recording with an incredible amount of bands. Check out Metal Archives if you want the exact count, I’m just going to mention 2 of them: Claws (Death Metal) and the infamous Hooded Menace, my personal favorite, probably one of the best Extreme Doom Metal acts around. But that my friends, is a whole other story…