“Tetragrammaton” is made up of 7 tracks of solid death metal laden with experiments, sound bytes and over the top, tongue in cheek theatrics. One thing to remember about this band is that they do not take themselves very seriously. This isn’t to say that they don’t write fantastic music. The band just has quite the collective sense of humor and is not afraid to show it, just take a look at their website.
“Tetragrammaton” features songs of extended length with a good portion of them climbing towards to the ten minute mark. The extended time allows the songs to cultivate themselves as the powerful, ear catching sections seamlessly intertwine with the chaotic riffing. The narrations provided by Orion Pax and soundbytes combine with the powerful riffs, orchestral elements and catchy (death metal) vocal hooks to add an element to The Monolith Deathcult’s sound that is extremely memorable.
Lyrically the band covers a broad range of topics from terrorism, to Transformers, to the Rwandan Genocide. The last mentioned topic, covered in "Drugs,Thugs, and Machetes," features clips from the movie “Hotel Rwanda” in the intro and during the chorus. The lyrics and imagery of the song is sure to invoke reactions similar to Slayer’s "Angel of Death" from some. Overall, The Monolith Deathcult does not stray away from topics that some may consider taboo or even in some cases unfit for death metal.
The opening track "Gods Amongst Insects" is the perfect example of what “Tetragrammaton” brings to the table. Evil chord progressions, death metal riffing, vocal hooks, powerful orchestrations, solid drumming and soloing and solid, fully realized songwriting. The overall style of the album leads to an enjoyable listening experience. All of the tracks here are essential listening and nothing feels like filler in the least.
“Tetragrammaton” is streaming on metalsucks.net and will be released on spotify and for purchase May 14th. This album may not be exactly everyone’s thing but “Tetragrammaton” is certainly more cohesive and accessible than previous Monolith Deathcult releases. “Tetragrammaton” definitely has a shot at being a top ten album of the year contender. Give it a shot. Pre-order or purchase, depending on your location here.
- M Trisolino
