Metal Minis - Vilifier - Okkulta

Vilifier - Rehearsal MMXI [Demo]

Vilifier are a rather intriguing black/death act to appear from Australia. Their material is does not defy the Australian traditional of gore soaked raw bestiality, but their three track rehearsal demo provides a little more than standard, compulsory black/thrashing onslaughts or fluent, dissecting raw black metal inclinations that seem to be getting popular every day, simply by exposing the music with almost sophisticated touches. Think of a slower Teitanblood or a more chug laden Antediluvian, fuse it with glimpses of unbridled ruptures, and you have Vilifier. The band excels at constructed well-maintained bridges to fluctuate between monotonous death/doom trudges and voluptuous moments of festering precision, blasting out rancid, piercing tremolos here and there. While it is short, the fifteen minute demo introduces and introspective channel that finds its way through darkness and chaos, and therefore there’s plenty of variation here, with the cherry on top of the cake being the abrasive, ear-shattering growls of the vocalist, a cavernous experience. Even amongst the more seasoned and professional acts to emerge from Aussie, Vilifier somehow stands out, and any resident war metal fan should have no problem welcoming this demo.

Okkulta - Witch [Demo]

Okkulta hail from Sweden and they’re yet another traditional heavy metal act to embrace the old school fervour they possess. However, their inclinations lean towards a somewhat eviler brand of traditional heavy, as stated on the title of the demo. The occult, evil, blasphemy and sorcery all seem to be themes that interest the young outfit, but queerly, they don’t fail at projecting that fervour onto their music, and all of a sudden you have two concise tracks, darker than any usual aspect to emerge from Sweden, and the slight deviation serves as the fulcrum of the demo. ‘’Devil’s Truth’’ leads the listener viscously with a visceral guitar tone and a couple of catchy tremolo passages, ultimately finalizing too quick for the listener to properly appease /himself/herself. Almost black metal-esque chords disseminate as they melt into a hooking verse and the vocals sing along truculently, a little immature but still decent. The following piece ‘’Witch’’ keeps a slightly more intricate persona, and scatters the demo into a more ritualistic hymn. Perhaps not all the aspects of the demo were well done, but I still enjoyed it. This may augment into something more promising in the future.

Vilifier: 8.50/10

Okkulta: 8/10