It’s usually easy categorize the current crop of OSDM revival bands. You’ve got Entombed worshippers (Gatecreeper), Bolt Thrower worshippers (Frozen Soul), Cannibal Corpse worshippers (Undeath), and so on and so forth. One band who isn’t so easy to pin down as a blatant worship act is Witch Vomit. Sure there are elements of certain early 90s death metal bands in their sound, but these elements are utilized in a fresh, original way. Their 2019 full length, Buried Deep in a Bottomless Grave, was one of the most hyped releases of the year. And while I wasn’t completely sold, I couldn’t help but give it a few listens out of sheer curiosity. The same can be said for their latest EP, Abhorrent Rapture.
There isn’t any new ground being broken on Abhorrent Rapture. If anything, it’s Witch Vomit continuing what they do best: churning out blinding blurs of bleak death metal like it’s nobody’s business. As the opening “Purulent Burial Mound” took charge, I asked myself, “What is this? Incantation goes war metal or Autopsy goes grind?” Both descriptions fit. They almost remind me of Pissgrave if Pissgrave’s riffs had more substance and depth. While Witch Vomit can blast you away with their high speed brutality, it’s their incorporation of repulsive, maggot infested Autopsy riffs that maintain the balance for purists like myself.
A wise man once said slow and heavy wins the race (or something like that). Witch Vomit heeds this advice with a devastating death/doom dirge straight from the crypt. “Funeral Purgation” doubles down on the Autopsy influence. More specifically, it channels the doom laden vitriol of Mental Funeral era Autopsy. I could practically feel my knuckles dragging across the ground as it filled my eardrums. “Necrometamorphosis” stands as the perfect contrast. It’s just as heavy as “Funeral Purgation”, but much, much, much faster. The combination of frantic riffs, blastbeat drumming, and ultra guttural vocals create quite a chaotic effect. This is where the shades of war metal/grind come in. I wouldn’t go as far to call Witch Vomit a war metal or grind band, but the spirit of these genres have certainly permeated their sound.
Witch Vomit saves the most disgusting for last with the EP’s title track. Doom elements seep their way in, but not to the point where I can call this death/doom like “Funeral Purgation”. This is flat out death metal with an emphasis on death. I’d go as far to say that last sentence sums up this entire EP and Witch Vomit’s ethos. Just when you think things can’t get any darker, here they come to prove you wrong and make your day even darker than it is already. God bless their coal black hearts.
All this praise aside, I still don’t know if I can unequivocally say I’m on the Witch Vomit train. I’ll continue to check them out with each subsequent release, but I’m not sure I’d ever be able to sit down on my own and say, “Okay, today we’re gonna listen to Witch Vomit.” It’s an acquired, putrid taste…and such putridity has never been more salivating, at least not in recent years. If your palette hankers for a platter of death, Witch Vomit have a full course meal prepared.
7 out of 10
Label: 20 Buck Spin
Genre: Death Metal
For fans of: Autopsy, Incantation, Pissgrave