So already this year I’ve talked about how HM2 pedals have surfaced in the unlikeliest of places like Indiana (Psychomancer), Chile (Soulrot), and even Ireland (Fleshwolf). Well, here is yet another surfacing in an unexpected place; Tokyo Japan.

My experience with Japanese metal, let alone old school Swedish death metal from Japan is virtually zero, so excuse me if I rave about the debut from Frostvore, as it absolutely nails the classic 90s Entombed and more specifically Dismember sound.

Much like any other country that usually isn’t associated with a certain sound or style, when they do discover it (I recall Polish death metal of the mid /late 90s being similar) they fuckin nail it and go balls out with a vigor and energy that imbues the original scene. It’s like Frostvore just now discovered Left Hand Path and Like An Ever Flowing Stream, and decided to pay pure, unbridled homage to it even though its been 30 years.

The entire album, with its perfectly rendered self-produced/mixed HM buzz, effortlessly reeks of the classics delivering the perfect balance of slicing cathing gallops, Celtic Frost inspired crawls and lots of groove and melody. From the standout, crushing lopes in the title track and “Extreme Cold Torture” to the razor-sharp canters of “Path To Your Tomb” (with a familiar “Revel in Flesh vibe), “Extreme Cold Torture”, perfectly Dismember-ish duo of “The Reaper”, and killer “Lake of Vein” and rumbling trot of closer “Unholy Mountain”, there really isn’t a weak track, and there are plenty of nods to their obvious peers.

Almost as good as the likes of original but new homage acts like In Pain, Entrails and such, Frostvore has certainly delivered a very impressive debut,  and is one of the more impressive ones in the genre I’ve heard in a while.

[Visit the band's website]

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