Pyramid of the Necropolis

As the name suggests, Houston’s War Master drink liberally from the cup of Coventry’s finest: Bolt Thrower. There are a few other ingredients mixed into the broth that is their debut LP ‘Pyramid of Necropolis’ however. Released back in 2011 when a return to first principles in metal was sorely needed, this oozes through every aspect of this album. The production hearkens back to those early Earache days when the guitar tone was so all encompassing yet not compressed to fuck, resulting in an impact that was more imposing and ambient than harsh and cold. Equally the drum sound is softened slightly, allowing for plenty of presence without weakening their impact or ability to cut through the mix.

But the real star of the show is War Master’s ability to blend the ultra-basic yet purposeful riff stylings of Bolt Thrower with some Swedish sophistication along with the way. War Master drive those dirgey, mid-paced riffs through a simple yet graceful kaleidoscope of rhythmic variation before slicing it in two with a sudden burst of speed or thrashy atonality, usually set to a d-beat or full on blast. For the most part however ‘Pyramid of Necropolis’ is kept to the slower end of death metal. working with the amoral indifference of Bolt Thrower riffs and splicing them with the outright evil of Carnage on ‘Dark Recollections’ or early Grave. The result is monolithically epic riffs that are enhanced further when they are occasionally dwelt on long enough for the lead guitar work to emerge. At this point War Master sound at their most modern, indulging in some melodies that were created in the post industrial metal landscape, as they fixate on a basic refrain and repeat, something not often done in the early 1990s.

It’s important to note that to some ears War Master may sound overly derivative, but this is an oversimplification for two reasons. The first being how clearly they have put their stamp on a recognisable style. Yes all the right boxes are ticked if emulating old school death metal is the aim of the game. But in blending distinct traditions within this vast body of work, War Master also add their own signature to these building blocks. The second reason is the context that ‘Pyramid of Necropolis’ was released in. The old school revival was in its infancy in 2011. The likes of Asphyx and Autopsy had only really just kicked off the come back album boom. Younger metal acts were still dominated by liberal art renderings of black metal, ultra-trendy stoner doom, or the homogenous and mechanical world of melodic and brutal death metal. Such things were tired by 2011 sure, but the next chapter was not yet mapped out. Albums like ‘Pyramid of Necropolis’ provided the most viable and quality underground metal of the time not because it resurrected older aesthetics, but it resurrected the spirit that death metal embodied at a more vital and creative time.

So whilst it may appear that this album is tapping into a long dead past for an easy buck, this is far from the whole truth. It seems to be written by an artist that took a step back from the trends of the day and opted to subvert them rather than build upon them. And in so doing not only created death metal that holds up against the best the genre has to offer, but also pointed the way forward for death metal to develop incrementally, and without gorging itself on external influences to the point where honest intentions devolve into farce. It understands the surface level appeal of classic death metal, but also carries forward its spirit, and most importantly places their own unique stamp on the genre. Which is why this album will endure well beyond many of the more derivative old school revival albums that came out in the decade that followed 2011.

Originally published at Hate Meditations

Straight up worship is pretty tricky. Most of the time, it is incredibly terrible and pointless genre fellatio that only manages to cheapen the genre as a whole. Occasionally however, a channeling occurs: a band hits the right notes, get the right attitude, and instead of merely imitating a band or sound they become an extension of it. Putrevore's Morphed From Deadbreath was Rottrevore's follow-up to Iniquitous. Codex Incubo felt like a lost Demilich release. And War Master's Pyramid of the Necropolis is the newest release from Bolt Thrower.

Hailing from Texas and featuring former members of legendary grindcore masters Insect Warfare, War Master make no bones about their sound. If not taking the name of a Bolt Thrower album as their moniker doesn't give it away, the bands Last.fm page declares War Master succinctly as "Death Metal. Bolt Thrower worship." Clearly, this band hate surprises, which is odd, considering Pyramid of the Necropolis is such a surprisingly excellent debt. The formula is taken straight from the Bolt Thrower-textbook: brutal, low-end driven mid-paced death metal with tons of groove, bursts of relentless grindcore and a no-nonsense attitude to songwriting. The hypothetical cudgel in musical form, used on your not-so-hypothetical cranium with relentless force. So ya know... Bolt Thrower.

War Master are the perfect worship band because they have the right attitude. There is not one ounce of pretentiousness or any confusion about what they are doing. War Master treat the sound and the property like it is their own, and do justice both to themselves and to Bolt Thrower with this album. Pyramid of the Necropolis is merely an open love-letter to the legends of English death metal, one that we all can enjoy and commit mass murder to.

Rating: 8/10

originally posted at: http://curseofthegreatwhiteelephant.blogspot.com/