Yeah, if you checked out that review of label mates Last Retch’s, Abject Cruelty, an album I really enjoyed,  or the likes of Tribal Gaze and Torture Hammer, this is going to be very similar. Granted, subtle differences in production, vocals, etc, are here, but for the most part, this is pretty fucking familiar.

While Last Retch has a little more Death/Doom lumber to their sound, Scorching Tomb gives off more ‘Caveman death metal’,  Tribal Gaze and  Sanguisugabogg vibes (Devin Swank even shows up on “Skullcrush”),  and with their more hefty,  hardcore meets death metal stomps, they also sort of imbue bands like Internal Bleeding.

This is cemented by former Obey the Brave bassist Miguel Lepage being in the lineup and fellow canuck death metal /hardcore act Primal Horde (who Scorching Tomb released a split with back in 2023) helping out on “Feel The Blade”. Fans of bands like and recent acts Open Kasket or Misery Whip will probably eat this up too.

But like the Last Retch album, this is killer stuff. The rare Cannibal Corpse-esque blast beats are filled with gobs of hefty, moshable riffs that bring the fucking ruckus, as tracks like “Stalagmite Impalement”, “Skullcrush”, “Diminished to Ashes”, “Feel The Blade”, ‘Sanctum of Bones”, and the trundling yet catchy Molder -ish “Bloodlust Sacrifice” are just simple, pure pummling bliss.

Do yourself a favor and grab both albums, NOW!. And mosh the fuck on.

It’s very easy to get things rolling immediately with the title track, “Abject Cruelty.” It’s the longest track on the album, clocking in at nearly 4 ½ minutes. If you take away the spoken word intro, which I can’t fucking understand, then it’s a little shorter. This is straight-up “living at the first five frets,” beatdown death metal, which is what we all need sometimes. The first track and most of the rest of the album make me think of Flesher and their exquisite debut, Tales of Grotesque Demise. What I’m saying is it’s roiling riff and headbang city with a population of your ass.

If you know me (you don’t), I like to explore the short tracks, too. That’s exactly what we have in “Dissecting the Leper.” After a very brief intro, the main riff shines with the appropriately punchy production. Some pinch harmonics also never hurt anyone. The meatiest, heaviest section hits around the two-minute mark, and it doesn’t let up.

You’ll have to skip all the way to the end to check out “Gatling Gun.” After the briefest of intros, another sledgehammer riff takes over, which then turns galloping once the drums get moving. If you think they’re just going to hit you in the face with riff after riff, you’re correct, but there is a chorus, too. Luckily, they keep the vocals in a low growl, because as I mentioned previously, this is kick you in the teeth death metal, which has no time for clean singing. In the solo at around three minutes, the guitarists like to show off their fretboard mastery, proving they can pen an excellent solo to go along with their stomp on your toe and slap your back pit riffs.

I hate to boil all this down into what I would call a short review, but there’s truthfully not much to add to what’s already been written. Last Retch isn’t out to reinvent anything, just punch you in the mouth. No orchestral sections, no clean singing, just riffs. I already mentioned Flesher’s debut as a reference, and it truly is. That album was one of my favorites in 2023, and Last Retch scratches that itch so completely that I’m bleeding. It’s a great workout album and has been added to my gym playlist.

What hasn’t changed is that ADE continues to be an underrated death metal powerhouse. And while the cheap, easy comparison is still ‘ A Roman version of Nile‘ and is still somewhat relevant, they are simply more than that and should be labeled as a top-notch death metal act on their own merit.

For those new to ADE, first go and get their back catalog now, especially their second effort Spartacus, and  2019s Rise of the Empire, where new vocalist Diocletianvs added a far more commanding, authoritative bellow to the proceedings as well as Stefan Morabito’s (Fleshgod Apocalypse, Hour of Penance, etc). killer production. Both return on Supplicium, and the results continue to see ADE become a true international death metal force.

As the album title implies, Supplicium is largely about Rome’s penchant for punishment and cruelty, and debauchery, specifically all of the brutal things the Romans did to folks – both enemies and their own. The Hellenic/ethnic instrumentation is again rife in every track, bringing a savage, elegant, and historical atmosphere to the brutal Italian death metal that, of course, takes cues from peers like Hour of Penance, Fleshgod Apocalypse, Vomit the Soul, and Hideous Divinity.

That all said, the album takes a few songs to really kick in, as the first couple of tracks “Avis Dis Pater” (A Roman god of the underworld’), “Burnt Before Gods,” are both fine songs, but my blood isn’t truly pumping until “Ad Bestias!” (‘The Beasts’) and then the fucking rousing “Vinum” ( ‘wine’ – about Rome’s last Bacchanal after the Senate banned them), which might be one of ADE’s finest hours, up there with “Mars’ Unpredictable Favor” from Spartacus.

“Patibulum” (the name for the crossbar on a Crucifix) really imbues truly regal, militant marches and pomp, despite the subject matter, and is another album’s standout before the blistering, and is this case, certainly warranted Nile-sounding “Quartered by Chariots”, which needs no explanation.

The choppy, moodier “Oderint Dum Metuant” (‘Let Them Hate, so long as They Fear’) is a bit too disjointed for me. But then, the burly, tribal percussive assault of “From Fault to Disfigurement” makes me want to fight in a Gladiator’s arena before “Taedium Vivere​” (‘Loathing of Life’) ends the album with a solid number, if not quite the stirring album completion I wanted.

Supplicium is another fine album from ADE, who, 4 (really good) albums in, should start to get a little more well-deserved respect and recognition.

“Fiat justitia ruat caelum”

My immediate comparison was bands like The Agonist, Arch Enemy, and early In This Moment, as the band plays a form of beefy ‘modern metal’ that culls from thrash, melodic death metal and metalcore . Elenoir is every bit as talented as Gossow and Alissa White-Gluz, with ample feral growls and some very nice clean vocals, not goth metal or soprano, but a very powerful emotional clean croon.

The band can deliver plenty of tempos and verse/chorus numbers like the single above ,”Several Injuries” or full on blasts like the start of “The Awakening” and everything in between; an angsty interlude (“Feel the End”), bruising groove metal (“Old Angel Midnight”), burly thrasher (“Blind Addiction”, “Before the Flood”),  more often than not containing big catchy choruses to highlight Elenoir’s talent. The album ends with “Silent Spring”, which features Francesco Ferrini of Fleshgod Apocalypse, who adds to his busy year of guest appearances (Ov Lustra, Shadow of Intent), and makes the closer a very epic, somber, album ending ballad.

I can’t say I’m going to come back to this album over and over, but certainly I’m not adverse to any of the songs when they play on shuffle, and certainly an under the radar female fronted band that may not have a big name or presence, but is almost as talented as some of their bigger peers.