London based death metal act De Profundis are set to release their brand new album, Kingdom of the Blind, on Wickerman Recordings, which follows up their excellent EP from 2014, Frequencies. The band, Craig Land (vocals), Shoi Sen (guitar), Paul Nazarkardeh (guitar), Arran McSporran (fretless bass), and Tom Atherton (drums) play a progressive, at times technical form of melodic death metal that doesn't go too over the top, unlike some other acts on the scene who pay more attention to musical prowess and less on the important stuff, like crafting good songs. You can tell that the band enjoys their prog and their jazz-fusion, as little bits pop up here and there, such as an atmospheric passage, McSporran's sinewy, jazzy fretless bass (a Jaco Pastorius fan perhaps?), or an intricate section that goes beyond what we'd normally hear on a traditional death metal record. Don't get me wrong, these guys know how to bludgeon too with extreme might, but it's their highly melodic, progressive moments that really stick out, such as on the twisting "All Consuming" and the mix of brutal death & complex jazz/prog that is the tasty title track. "Beyond The Threshold" is a chugging yet highly melodic number with plenty of intricate parts, like a wild collision between vintage Opeth and Amon Amarth, and among the more brutal numbers, "Kult Of The Orthodox" and "A Strange Awakening" are can't miss tunes. As musicians, these guys are top notch, with Sen & Nazarkardeh laying down some impressive riffs and blazing solos (if you love tasty twin harmonies, you've come to the right place), McSporran dropping in his nimble jazz inflected lines, and Atherton pounding away with acrobatic fills. Singer Land has a great death metal growl, reminding a bit of Amon Amarth's Johan Hegg, and he fits the style of the music perfectly.
Kingdom of the Blind is a wonderful progressive & melodic death metal release, and a lot of the more 'known' bands who get plenty of press these days could learn a lot from De Profundis' talent for crafting memorable songs that are brutal yet still highly melodic and complex. Make sure you don't miss this one!
Track Listing
1 – Overture - 1:33
2 – Kult Of The Orthodox - 5:35
3 – Illumination - 5:38
4 – All Consuming - 5:32
5 – Kingdoms Of The Blind - 6:09
6 – Beyond The Threshold - 5:25
7 – A Strange Awakening - 5:09
8 – The Antagonist - 5:05
9 – Thrown To The Wolves - 4:49
10 – In Solitude 6:38
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