Blasphemous Ritual

I'm surprised this album hasn't been reviewed yet. Istidraj is one of the harshest, most satisfying black metal bands I've ever heard. These Singaporean sickos take the punkish, lo-fi, abbrasive approach of Sargeist, Satanic Warmaster, Dodsferd and the like, but they're actually a full band, as opposed to a solo act. Singakult Black Metal, their second full-length, is one of my favorite BM albums ever, but I chose to review Blasphemous Ritual because I think it achieves something very few other records do in this genre — here, they manage to genuinely break new ground without resorting to wanky "prog" tactics, folky interludes, or strange instruments, as so many other bands do (not that I have a problem with that, just that Istidraj stand out for me because they take the opposite approach). Whereas Singakult Black Metal took an Ildjarn sort of minimal-but-melodic tack, Blasphemous Ritual is about pure, balls-out harshness. It's a bit punk and silly (the intro track has faux moans from a maiden being defiled by Satan), but it's this irreverence that feels rather refreshing in an idiom notorious for taking itself too seriously. The tongue-in-cheekness by no means dilutes the overwhelming intensity of their sound, however. On this latest effort, the band forgoes melody in favor of overloaded, blasting cacophony, and I'm still searching for another band that matches the extremity and sadistic beauty found on this recording.