Compatriots per their enduring meditations upon death and the unlimited dark beyond now stand arm-to-arm in avowal as Indonesian duo EXHUMATION and Oaklanders FUNERAL CHANT coalesce for an inspired split album showcase. A display of ruthless esotericism and smoldering blackened death aggression ‘Sacred Oath: Temple of Death‘ captures each band at their own respective points of self-expansion, arriving upon fresh plateaus of exploratory idealism which yield darker-than-thou results beyond the norm and away from trend-hopping modernisms. Beyond a well-paired showing and strongly curated/designed gig the material here is equally praiseworthy as each band here delivers work which is evolutionarily representative rather than interstitial.

Around since 2008 and bedecked with four well-received full-lengths since Exhumation have evolved from a unique take on ‘old school’ death metal toward their own ritualistic current likewise informed by ancient black/death, thrash, heavy metal and beyond. You might recall I’d set their most recent album (‘Master’s Personae‘, 2024) at #5 on my Top 50 Albums of 2024 amidst plenty of praise, considering them one of the most underrated and compelling bands in the current death metal sphere. The most reasonable comparisons I’ve seen folks make to the duo’s sound are probably Obliteration and Venenum (Deu) though much like their split-mates they’ve been likened to Necrovore incessantly, which I have to assume is per stated inspiration. On the four songs provided here the band generally expand beyond the foundation of their previous full-length while reaching for even wilder expression in a few cases.

It is impossibly rare that I sit down with a beloved band’s latest maul and find any sort of surprising turn, or, anything that might keep me guessing after four album’s worth of delve but Exhumation curl the hair in my ears differently every time. Their high-rate all killer flow of ideas, the rhythmic twists provided and general insurgency from vocalist Bones (esp. the grotesque “Meditation Through Death”) all consistently inspire with each pass. Incorporating devotional chant into two of the songs here, one which introduces opener “Master’s Prayer” and another which closes out “Subterranean Ways“, acts as thematic glue which bookends the first three pieces included, linking the thread into a contiguous stretch of inspiration. The latter piece offers a natural feature here as it cuts into a triplet-fed heavy metal trance in its second half while carrying itself with the band’s signature psychoactive thrashing death verve, an effortlessly wrathful bestially conjured performance throughout.

When I’d reviewed Funeral Chant‘s second LP (‘Dawn of Annihilation‘, 2021) years ago I distinctly recall the dilemma of falling headfirst into their ‘old school’ attuned vision of blackened death metal and drawing a blank. Not necessarily in a bad way but rather my first thought was “this has riffs, is more kinetically shot and brutal than expected” and really had nothing more to say beyond appreciating the militant riff-forward assault of the experience. Fans of Superstition, Vorum and Verminous will hear the early thrashing circa ’87 USDM implied attack of that record and understand why it smokes in an instant + figure well enough why they’d do a split with Exhumation. The precision attack of their work is mostly what I’d been looking for when first engaging with these three new songs.

“Testimony of Fire” resuscitates Funeral Chant‘s rally via a rawed and I’d say deeper blackened hand, a straight forward drill through riffs worthy of earlier 90’s Swedish responses to Merciless arranged to facilitate bruising speed and maximum tunneling effect. You’ll find more spastic accost on “…In Feverdream” right after, a far shorter blitz suitable for the comparisons made in the previous paragraph where a shot of chaos finds the band at their ‘old school’ best. The piece to surprise here is ~8 minute skull smoker “Sepulchral Pillars of the Funereal Gate” a heavily atmospheric piece in their own style which takes quasi-death/doom metal float into a ‘The Nocturnal Silence‘ level of dagger swiping movement throughout. Beyond the sheer immersive value of this song it signals a marked expansion of their ouevre atop pure aggression.

No doubt I am up to my usual bullshit when it comes to split albums as I’ve always picked a favorite, or at least a standout of some sort. Greater familiarity and a larger discography pushes me toward Exhumation dominating my thoughts on ‘Sacred Oath: Temple of Death‘ but to be fair they are currently one of my favorite active bands, period. These artists have enough foundational inspiration in common to justify their pairing outright yet they sound vastly different in practice as their own personalities continue to morph, setting them side-by-side does a fine job of reinforcing the stature of each with quality material. A high recommendation.

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