Ectovoid - Fractured In The Timeless Abyss

There are moments where I really question myself about why I dislike the whole metal scene today, and why I can't enjoy them to the fullest. Old school bands come in malicious hordes and decimate everything in their path, but there are also old school bands that love their atmosphere, and can incorporate the perfect measure of hard-hitting riffs into their atmospheric tendencies. I really didn't see Ectovoid coming. Hellthrasher productions are signing better and better bands every month, and I would have had no doubts about this band's quality had I known they were releasing an album. Ectovoid really has a short discography, consisting of just one demo and their full-length ''Fractured In The Timeless Abyss'', a subterranean obelisk of cavernous brutality. Yes, that's what these guys are all about. They bring so much nostalgia to the listener that it just strikes like a bolt of lighting, thunderous and effective.

At first, I questioned the Metal Archives for dubbing this as black/death metal, because all I heard was dense, doomy, even Incantation influenced death metal, swaying along a crude path with a substantial amount of groove. But as I listened with more care, I tiny details that adorn the blasphemous death metal power that the album already possessed. These tiny details I'm talking about are buried beneath a ton of hefty music going on above, and sometimes their dispersion isn't not spread out equivalently, but the main point is that these guys actually have a small amount of black metal influence around them, and that can only mean good news. The atmosphere is right there, and a dense current of ambiance is always supporting the riffs from the back, enabling them to go atmospheric as well. The album delves a lot into death/doom territory as well, a fine line of decrepit, sludgy riffs maintaining the the balance of the music. Black metal tremolo passages are incredibly common, but they're rather a resultant of Incantation and black metal riffs combined, exploding with a thick sound and some queer twists that happen to occur during the execution of the riffs. The vocals are also a shadowed mass, grisly guttural lows that fit into the music perfectly.

The leads on this album are almost none, but I do like the cavernous tinge of brooding melodies found on ''Locked In Dismal Gaze''. Most of the riffs are actually robust combinations of simple, mid paced chord progressions and Incantation-esque tremolo bursts. The most apparent aspect of ''Fractured Into The Timeless Abyss'' is its fair share of atmosphere and brutality and groove, thriving passion and moods more prominently than crushing sections which are usually sections that are commonly used in death metal. Sure, this may not be as cavernous or aura laden as say ''Netherwards'' or the maniacal demo by Hellige, but it does exclude an amount of sharp, piercing riffs in order to increase the dominance of the thick fog of timeless abyss surrounding it. Many typical headbangers may find the lack of crunchy, headbang friendly riffs as a big flaw though people who give more importance to musical quality will admire, if not enjoy the classy riffs and aspects created on this album. I now salute you towards your journey into the timeless abyss.

Highlights:
Shapeshifting Mass
Splintered Phantasm
Locked In Dismal Gaze


Rating: 88%