Citing influences such as Beherit, Von and Nifelheim, Satanic Funeral is an multinational US/Netherlands based project featuring members of Vrolok, Mord, Misanthropy and Lugubre-and if you are at all familiar with those ultra underground acts, you should enjoy Satanic Funeral and their utterly hideous and nasty raw form of old school black metal.

This is some icky, grim stuff. Pitched shifted deep grunts and growls over old school, primeval late 80’s early 90’s black death metal like the previously mentioned bands and maybe the likes of Possessed and Bathory. So there’s little in the production department as the crusty, simplistic riffs rumble and occasionally blast over the truly disturbing vocals that rant about the usual Satanic fare.

The more nihilistic tracks like the bleating title track, “Ritual”, “The Satanic Funeral” and “Your Blood Stains My Altar” seem to have more menacing resonance than the plodding, more oozy tracks like “The Constant Loathing” and “Forever Burning in Hell”. Throw in the obligatory cover of Beherit’s “Unholy Pagan Fire”, and this filthy uncompromising little slab is over.

Although this really isn’t my thing, I can appreciate the tangible sense of ritualistic menace that glosses much of the material, mostly due to Antihuman’s inhuman growls and whispers, but in the whole, this is a release that’s a bit above my non demonic comprehension.

[Visit the band's website]

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