Irkallian Oracle
« Grave Ekstasis »
Bolvark
Gothenburg, Sweden. The place is renowned for many melodic Death Metal acts that emerged from the metropolis in the early 90’s. Dark Tranquillity, In Flames, Arch Enemy and At the Gates have all found glory beyond the city walls, but one act who’s emerged to break the “Gothenburg” sound stereotype is IRKALLIAN ORACLE. Releasing debut album, “Grave Ekstasis,” the band’s story is shrouded in mystery preferring to let the darkness tell the tale. Title track, “Grave Ekstasis”, begins as a punishingly slow burn that achingly builds in momentum to culminate in a wall of static guitars and juggernaut drumming. Dirty and dirge-like, the song boasts a combination of Crust and Black/Death. The repetition of its rhythm helps demonstrate the feral quality as deep throated growls propel the song ever deeper into the abyss!
By contrast “Iconoclasm” burst forth with a no-hold barred approach basking in the darkness from with it came. Blast beats and tremolo guitar picking accentuate the song before tapering off into mid- paced territory. Vocally, the erotically dismal lyrics possess a slight echo to their delivery while the overall sound has more in common with Norway’s Aeternus than the commercial melody of In Flames. Still, the song displays a penchant for the repetitious and sinister as the pace never fully speeds up but rather lumbers on to its conclusion. What we have here, is a mystery in IRKALLIAN ORACLE that’s bound to leave rabid Black/Death fans chomping at the bit, while waiting for the opportunity to see this enigmatic band live!
8/10
