Coven of the Dead

With a band name like Crypts and an album cover like the one to be found on their debut full length “Coven of the Dead” it is not too hard to guess what kind of music to expect. Filthy and rotten German death metal is the meal of the day, and as far as my personal opinion is concerned there is always time and place for at least one more quality old school death metal record. While Crypts are a pretty newish band the members have been active in some other acts like e.g. the pretty well known black metal outfit Heimdalls Wacht so there is a certain level of experience. This proves to be an asset as the album feels well edited and crafted with the band showcasing impressive instrumental skills and a feeling for what makes this genre so enjoyable.

Clocking in at roughly 32 minutes and offering seven hymns of foul music from ghastly caverns it becomes immediately clear that Crypts have no intention to reinvent the wheel or offer an unorthodox take on the genre by any means. Their approach is to take some of the records and bands which might have been their personal favorites back in the days and carefully pick elements from each, combining them in a homogenous way and add their own flavor to the mix. One aspect which makes this record such a smooth listen is the fact that despite presenting some kind of a genre best-of the band’s style is distinctive enough to stand out from the pack. Their sound is rooted somewhere between the Florida school, classic Stockholm vibes and some other European acts like Benediction or Sinister, but Crypts also have thrown in some slightly more technical patterns.

For larger parts of the album they stay within a groovy mid-tempo mode, but they also know how to put the pedal to the medal as shown e.g. in “Nuclear Vengeance”. Always infectious and crushing Crypts deliver some impressive riffs, at times dropping the tempo to a dirge-like stomp, but always making sure to keep the momentum and the music rolling forward like a tank. Visceral blasting hooks and meaty riffs amidst unearthly doomy breaks that open into a catatonic swaying groove flow seamlessly together with transcendent efficiency.

Some of the best parts are produced when Crypts unleash some unexpected melody or macabre atmosphere. Although these sections aren’t the norm and used sparingly, they are impressive when they appear and enhance the band’s overall offering significantly. In other moments subtly dissonant melodies are woven between the monolithic drums and titan chords, lending the album as a whole enough variation to keep the listener engaged during the whole time. The songwriting is on point and while the big surprises have been spared there is enough meat to pick from the bone even for seasoned death metal fans without any filler material to be found.

A clear production full of low end warmth allows the fetid yet resplendently eerie music to be heard with all the nuance and subtleties needed. The guitar tone is buzzy without having been maxed to the extreme. The drums have a bit of a muffled and mirky sound, but somehow this fits and further highlights the putrid overall character of the album. Crypts might not win any awards for innovation, but as long as you approach “Coven of the Dead” with the right mind-set you will find one of the best old school death metal gems of the year. Collectors should hurry up to grab a physical copy and also take a look at the really cool looking shirts from one of the hottest prospects of the genre.