DENOUNCEMENT PYRE

Black metal, Australia, and Hells Headbangers; it is typically a winning combination for the listener. "World Cremation" from Melbourne's DENOUNCEMENT PYRE is no exception. Featuring guitarist/bassist/vocalist and sole remaining original member Decaylust of HUNTERS MOON and NOCTURNAL GRAVES fame, along with new member and anywhere/anytime drummer InVotan, "World Cremation" seeks not so much to be Aussie war metal or one of the continent's toxic death/black amalgams as it does a purer style of black metal compared to what one is used to hearing from Hells Headbangers and some of the country's better known and battled hardened acts.

Well, maybe said style was not consciously sought, but it's what DENOUNCMENT PYRE ended up with on "World Cremation". Ah, but here comes exactly the kind of qualifying statement so common in OCD-addled critics' circles. It is black metal with shades of death vaguely reminiscent of ANGELCORPSE and pockmarked with the kind of grit, gristle, and immolating qualities most metallically identifiable as Australian.

But back to brass tacks… Stripping away the shit of bulls what one hears are big, hairy, buzzing clumps of insect-swarming guitars, traditional blasting moments between measured beats, rationed use of lacerating solos and BM harmonies, and nasty, crackling vocals. Additional spins reveal subtle dynamics in the form of effective pace variation and brief keyboard/choral bits that serve only as points of enhancement on songs like "Coven of Diabolical Prophecies" and "Salvation, The Fading Light", probably the most nuanced track on the album and one that includes a death-march to, uh, die for. In fact, similar grinding riff patterns pop up in several places, either launching or following speedier, sometimes DARKTHRONE groovier (e.g. "Invination of Poison") passages.

Stout as it may be, it's not like "World Cremation" establishes any new standards nor pushes contemporary levels of bloodlust to grisly new heights either. Its black junk does however work as a much-needed fix for the dope-sick.