Tzaraath     

Abortion
Mortis Humanae Productions 2012

On their debut EP Swedish black metal hatemongers Tzaraath scald your ears with their brand of demonic black metal.  Abortion consists of 4 songs, each one darker than the last.  The album starts with Jesus Wept which moves with dramatic riffs and thrashed out violence.  Deathly vocals swoop in during slower passages while high, scratchy vocals conjure images of Hat of Gorgoroth.  Metamorphosis spurts out flashes of violent riffing and plodding bass heavy lines.  Melodic movements sweep across the soundscape like a ghostly shade, brooding and ominous.  Fertilis Mortem ravages the landscape with a full on black metal assault that is filled with the fury and obscurity of early Gorogroth but with melodic accents that continually rise up.  Taking a step back, I can even compare it with Ritual era Master's Hammer, though not as mysterious or unique.  The drawn out, sorrowful riffing towards the middle of the song lingers upon Swedish notes that invoke thoughts of Dark Funeral or Mayhem.  The bonus track, Glaciers, has a rougher, more primitive feel to the song.  The sound is more washed out and distant, though the Scandinavian melodies and sepulchral obscurity of the music is still present in vast quantities.  The song is cold and the pacing makes me feel like a person stranded in a snow storm, marching towards their demise as they freeze in the subzero temperatures.  One noticeable drawback to this EP is the drum production.  I am not a fan at all of the bass drum sound.  For a first heretical summoning, Tzaraath have done well.  My interest is definitely piqued and I look forward to hearing from them in the future.  Darkness and blackened obscurity prevail.  Nighttime metal for hellish ghouls.