Shouting curses at a smoking altar in preparation for their next ceremonial haunt Kiel, Germany-based black metal quintet DYSANGELIUM reappear ash-smothered and zealous as ever in rouse of detestation and hex via their latest mLP. A set of three new daggers and one antique poignard feature as the instruments of ‘Exxekratus‘ and its greater ritual of summoning, a conjure of force and fire amidst a curse cast. Substantial enough at just under a half hour and featuring prime representative material this mini-album could be received as wounding introduction or invigorating omen, a warning of what has been transpiring in their shadowy keep for the last several years pinned and plastered to the door by dried blood from an unholy blade.

Dysangelium formed circa 2009 entirely sure of where they’d sparked from in release of a couple of all-pro demos in the early 2010’s which were stylistically focused on orthodox black metal inspired frenzy to start. Though I’d describe their sound as “occult black metal” overall those early works appeared to have been inspired by the evolution of Watain (and to some degree the first Funeral Mist album) as they’d approached a debut of their own. In terms of the German black metal scenery of the last decade (re: Shrine of Insanabilis, Ascension, Chaos Invocation) these folks are typically lumped into categorical similarity with their labelmates but have carried their own voice and vision beyond the demo era. This EP takes us back to those early days with one bonus song, “Delirious Transcendence”, which’d been cut from their debut LP (‘Thánatos Áskesis‘, 2014) due to consideration for a vinyl release and its length. This piece is the anchoring reference the uninitiated could use to parse the lung-shaking command of these folks as it has carried through the last decade.

The three new songs which feature on ‘Exxekratus‘ persist with the same lineup as found on Dysangelium‘s previous album (‘Death Leading‘, 2019) which I’d wholly underrated when it released. This is a sound which is thrilling to return to, exciting for the sake of the peaking munitions offered on their previous release via a brash creative streak, stunning curation and rawly propulsive production values. As distinctive as their use of odd rhythmic rants and gruff, declaratively barked vocals are I’ve largely followed the band’s work for their increasingly capable wielding of chaos, or, the guitarist’s style and approach. Any continuation of that thread and/or voice is worth pursuing and even as an interstitial release the songs found on this EP are a best possible omen set.

With that said I would say the barbaric shouted accost from Sektarist 0 on these new songs is its own force, a chasmic arrival, and one which he doubles to grotesque effect on “Trachea”. The whipping determination and gang-shouted finesse of opener “Of The Burning Throne (Manifest I)” is just as impressive if not familiar in its movements and braced by an almost hardcorish sluice of shouted and bashed rhythm. This level of performance should manifest in one of two ways: Either a rousing sermon to the demented ear or an incessant barking set to frighten the meek, and as such results will depend on your temperament. For my own taste this level of immediate roughness and the howling pangs it provides only inspires as a clear yet coughing vessel for dread, anger and in some cases further experimentation.

Of course that level of nuance is not going to be as obvious to an oblivious passerby, I could go on about how these folks’ve changed over the years well beyond their vocals but the addition of “Delirious Transcendence” at the end of ‘Exxekratus‘ makes an argument slightly in the opposite direction… fitting right in with the other three pieces apart from the actual cacophony of the production values per bit more echoic reverb in general. What I will say is that setting “Whispering Knives (Manifest II)” right before the drop into “Delirious Transcendence” emphasizes how clear and intense, immediately striking this newer material is next to the patiently lurking damage of their debut LP sessions.

The soul might be twisted into different forms via the passage of time but its characteristic fortitudes and maniac vivre remains the same, pulling from a place of possession and psychotic empowerment. In this sense Dysangelium continue to impress with their vision of raving ritual, if this is the direction suggested going forth then I am stoked to see where they’ll take it in approach of the inevitable third LP. In terms of sheer utility ‘Exxekratus‘ is an extension of what these folks have always done, a reminder of where they’d started, and should serve as worthy introduction to their craft.

---