I’m not familiar with Portugal’s Process of Guilt, but considering the country’s quality output this recently (Goldepyre, Grog, Primal Attack, The Ominous Circle, Switchtense) I thought I’d see how the country’s post rock/sludge genre was doing, and based on a review at this very site of the band’s last album, 2012’s , FÆMIN , my curiosity was peaked.

Well, these guys like Neurosis that’s for sure.

Along with Hugo Santo’s gruff Scott Von Till shout, the almost band’s tribal, deliberate often repetitive pulse and steady pace and builds is a dead ringer for many Neurosis sounds. The bass heavy, throbbing production carries a heavy, brooding Godlfesh (“Servant”, “Black Earth”, “Feral Ground”) influence  and  a Gojira ish hefty stammer those come together for a solid if unoriginal album of heavier than normal post rock/sludge that’s a mood based listen.

I say that because the  6 track, 42 minute album has a more bleak undercurrent that some brighter, more shimmery post rock, but that results in a pretty impressive level of heft. The atmospherics are kept to a minimum with little to no ambient builds or delicate intros. Other than “Feral Ground”, All 6  tracks  get right to the feedback drenched lopes, and often it’s truly heavy as hell as heard mid way through the title track or closer “Hoax”, which are suffocatingly heavy and dense.

This band’s  shift from more 90s death/doom on their debut, to today’s massive crumbling tone is an erstwhile transition, and I’ll  be looking forward to future releases when in need of a dose of pure, deliberate, desolate bulldozing music.

[Visit the band's website]

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