Entranced by dramatic visions of Islamic mythological darkness Tampines, Singapore-based death metal trio VRYKOLAKAS rip-and-tear through this fifth full-length album in depiction of flailing horrors as the eternal struggle of divine forces gives way to disintegrating light. ‘Nocturnal Dominion of Death‘ is more-or-less a direct follow up to their third album in terms of the groove-stricken voicing and arabesque melodic subtleties it develops through brazen and often brutally stated death metal attack, this time easing on the number of rapid fire ideas for the sake of impactful repetition. What we lose in rabid freneticism we gain in a somewhat more atmospheric yet no less cutting barrage from these more recently reinvigorated die-hards.

Vrykolakas formed as a duo circa 1991 who’d initially been cultivating a black/death metal sound not too drastically different from the extreme sounds of the scene at the time, of which the best known are probably Impiety and Abhorer nearby but their sound was rooted in simpler grinding death metal movements on thier first demo tape (‘Demo‘, 1992). Those three songs and a handful of pieces written during the mid-90’s would resurface as official recordings on ‘The Necromantic Revocation‘ (2022) and do well to bridge the gap before they’d resumed activity in 1999, eventually putting out a couple different versions of their next EP/demo (‘Vrykolakas‘, 2000) a brutal, grinding set of songs that featured a sound which was more clearly concerned with a severe underground death metal attack but not limited to pure death metal inspiration, rather different line-ups have brought in different sounds. The quartet responsible for their debut full-length (‘Spawned From Hellfire And Brimstones‘, 2004) still had a pretty rough handle on things beyond the previous demo but most all of their releases prior to 2020 were generally entirely raw in their recording/production values and focused on brutal death metal. While the band’s past work shouldn’t be entirely overlooked most all of it can be sidestepped as below average ’til the pandemic years when the current trio line-up began releasing ‘old school’ death metal inspired albums.

Starting with the ‘Into the Shadows‘ (2020) tape EP this newly prolific era of Vrykolakas provides the most key precedence for what ‘Nocturnal Dominion of Death‘ manages today with twisted mid-to-fast paced pure death metal songs which most often create flattened semi-melodic interest with pieces written for two guitars. While we could still consider the thus-far peak of creative interplay their third LP (‘And Vrykolakas Brings Chaos And Destruction‘, 2021) much of what this fifth album does in iteration of that general register, sound and style is release the locked-in channeling shared between drums and guitars and attempts to branch out into differently exaggerated vocal cadence and more lucid, thrashing riffcraft. Granted there is no mistaking the shared reality and fidelity of their work all of which sustains a rich enough render and crisped guitar tone to lead with without polishing away their classics-minded ear for underground death metal sounds.

Built like a tank around the riff and launched at a considerable pace most of what Vrykolakas do here on ‘Nocturnal Dominion of Death‘ speaks to a brutal muscle memory tempered for the sake of more complex and deliberately stated pure death metal style. In this sense their motions are yet percussive and groove oriented in shape and statement (see: “The Forbidden Hope for Death”). This lends a certain bluntness to every action on songs like “Foretaste the Divine Wrath” which fans of Netherlands and (non-blackened) Polish death metal of the mid-2000’s should appreciate. The diminished refrains and crooked angles taken when it comes time to insert a lead guitar directive or solo usually sits as a feature of any given piece but when compared directly to the third album from these folks this record is less dense with its number of riff changes and heavier on repetition which develops atmosphere. The deeper we step into the full listen the more they’ve done to keep the pace up, the grooves surprising, and their attack violent enough to entertain.

“Convents Leading to Sa’ir” offers a fine example of what most all post-2020 releases from these folks has excelled at in terms of creating tuneful, exaggerated grooves alongside syncopated cadence to manage memorable shout-along movements which we don’t find too often outside of Deicide inspired bands of the late 80’s or perhaps similar melodic points explored by Nile or even Rudra depending on the album. Vrykolakas‘ own version of this type of movement is again a blunted and buzzing edge which already feels like the signature of their sound in their revived studio-based state. As we hit upon key songs like “From Hellfire Comes the Spawn” and recall the tremolo-picked drilling movements of earlier pieces like “Ascension of the Knowledge” there is a clear clustering of different types of songs throughout the full listen which seems to indicate which ideas had a bit more time to cook and the over-arching points of influenced that carry through the whole thing.

Though I do still prefer the at-times more idea rich overactive side of their third album Vrykolakas have done well to return with a no less intense and engaging follow up. Notable album art, agreeable runtime, and a general exhaustion of riffs all in a similar state of mind help ‘Nocturnal Dominion of Death‘ feel like a complete and substantial entry from these wizened folks. Though I don’t find their work particularly memorable I would say that this is an above-average release which does well to continue the momentum these folks have sustained for these last four years. A moderately high recommendation.

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