Band: Gloria Morti

Title: Eryx

Label: Cyclone Empire

Distribution: Bertus

Release date: 09/05/2008

Review: CD

Gloria Morti ’s history starts at the very end of former millennium at the Finnish city of Heinola. The band records several demo tapes, which do evolve from intense and obscure Thrash Metal into a more dark / brutal-oriented form of Death / Black Metal. In 2004, they got signed to the Japanese label World Chaos Productions, which resulted in the release of the debut album Lifestream Corrosion. A successful promo-mini-album followed (called Phoenix Caged In Flesh) and finally Cyclone Empire, one of the fastest growing labels nowadays, offered this band a new deal. This second full length, Eryx, was recorded at the home studio (SoundSpiral Studios) of guitar player Juho Räihä, whom you might know from Before The Dawn (a band that I do not really like that much, but that has, luckily, not much to do with the music Gloria Morti stand for) - the mastering, by the way, has been done by Mika Jussila, of course, at his Finnvox Studio. Gloria Morti nowadays combines technical and harsh Death Metal in the vein of, let’s say, Zyklon and Behemoth, with somewhat grim Black Metal, including elements from Post-Black Metal and a lot of atmospheric elements (spherical keyboards). The rhythmic tempo is mostly fast, yet does also contain several slow pieces, and also the vocals by Psycho are sublime (floating between death grunt and black scream). In a way you can find back the thrashy roots in some riffs, but the evolution is so drastic that the demos Thorngarden (2001), Gomorrah (2002) and The Cerberos Gate (2002) seem to be recorded by another band. I think you might consider Eryx some modern symbiosis of Zyklon, Panchrysia, MindGrinder, Nile, Council Of The Fallen, Emperor, Cannibal Corpse, Enthroned, Behemoth, Six Feet Under and Morbid Angel. …and not just a cheap copycat-one, yet a mature, open-minded version! Oh yes, the track Sands Of Hinnom features a guest appearance by Destructhor (Thor Anders Myhren) from Zyklon and Myrkskog-fame.

89/100

Ivan Tibos.