- Country: Germany
- Style: Blackened death metal
- Label: Ván Records
- Release date: 13 October 2023
Five years after The Scythe of Cosmic Chaos, the German Lovecraft obsessives returned with their fourth album, and for me it was the best death metal record of 2023. Seven songs, another stunning Paolo Girardi painting on the cover, and a story about the Great Old Ones waging war against the Elder Things. Very nerdy, very serious, and completely convincing.
What makes Sulphur Aeon special is that they write real melodies inside the chaos. “Hammer from the Howling Void” storms in with black metal tremolo riffs and then opens into a chorus you can actually hum. “Arcane Cambrian Sorcery”, the first single, is the most direct song here, and “The Yearning Abyss Devours Us” slows down into something huge and doomy. The vocals are a deep roar with a lot of character, closer to a preacher than a cookie monster.
The title track and the long closer “Beneath the Ziqqurrats” bring everything together. The production is massive but still lets the guitars breathe. If you like your death metal epic and atmospheric, don’t miss this one.
Best tracks:
Hammer from the Howling Void
Arcane Cambrian Sorcery
The Yearning Abyss Devours Us
Seven Crowns and Seven Seals
Author’s rating: 9.2/10
