SKELETHAL - Of The Depths... (12" LP on Cloudy Blue Vinyl w/ Download Card)

Hailing from the now-fertile French death metal scene, SKELETHAL comprise two diehard death metal addicts, Gui Haunting and Jon Whiplash, who decided in early 2012 to form a band mainly influenced by the genre's classics: Entombed, Carnage, Morbid Angel, Pestilence, Autopsy, and Death among others. With that foundation firmly in place, SKELETHAL unleashed the Morbid Ovation demo in 2012 and then two critically acclaimed EPs in 2014, Deathmanicvs Revelation and Interstellar Knowledge of the Purple Entity, which were later compiled onto CD in 2015 as Morbid Revelations.

Having played many gigs and spread their name in several countries, SKELETHAL are now about to reveal their first full-length, Of the Depths..., for new label home HELLS HEADBANGERS. The duo's aim is plainly stated - absolute DEATH WORSHIP - and once again, they will wield the Metal of Death like a scythe, an axe, and blunt hammer simultaneously, all in obeisance to occult forces beyond the mien of man. Being diehard death metal addicts themselves, HELLS HEADBANGERS couldn't be more pleased to have SKELETHAL among its roster, and are anxiously anticipating unleashing the band's rumbling, roiling tank-tread of a sound.

Indeed, the immediately tangible heft and just utterly CRUSHING weight of SKELETHAL is felt upon the first few seconds into Of the Depths.... It is familiar, for sure, for the duo proudly wear the aforementioned influences, but just like their opening clutch of EPs, SKELETHAL manage to authentically extract the essence of said influences rather than ripping them off wholesale (or worse). In that sense, Of the Depths... verily becomes a proud 'n' potent entry into the classic death metal canon, being no more but certainly no less than actual DEATH fucking METAL done by two diehards who live (and die) for this form of filth. And yet, with 10 tracks spanning a total of 40 minutes, SKELETHAL here display some subtle twists to their timeless sound, branching out but barely, never betraying themselves or their chosen metal; it simply becomes a longer, stronger display of all that made the band tick and kick before, a deeper and darker plunge into cosmic horrors and boundless morbidity. Will you join them and become Of the Depths...?