Call of the Void

Keen on the “ambush and overwhelm” form of death metal devastation, Evulse made their first impression on the world with this brief 2018 demo, and quite an impression it was. Never settling into a comfortable tempo, the quintet rain ridiculous blasting vengeance down on the listener from the off, then stamp and crash round any medium-intensity moment as if trying to kill frogs under their boots. Getting through the first pair of songs in under 2 minutes apiece shows a serious intent to maim, though Call of the Void wisely allows the title track to unfold a different sort of discomfort more akin to the cave-lurking Finndeath style. This longest track does groove briefly, though what pleases me in particular is the evidence that Evulse follow no specific formula to develop the atmosphere of the song, huge spacious guitars turning to mowing riffs that make best use of the monster bass tone and rabid production. Huge spacious guitars may have been more appropriate for ‘Agoraphobia’ given the title, but this final assault mixes some of the earlier ferocity with just a pinch of more controlled delivery.

It’s never easy to tell whether a band can maintain what was begun with a 10 minute demo, yet Evulse have all the necessary ingredients to smash the death metal underground on this evidence, packing a stupid amount of power and speed into chaotic songs that not only cannot bore but even reject any kind of samey repetition. The title track suits my tastes better, but for simply massive-sounding demo death metal, Call of the Void is right up there.