Haunted by nightmares in black and white and cursed to witness only what the dead are meant to see in their dreams Sardinia, Italy-based death metal trio TOMBAL claw, kick and crawl as they introduce their intent to walk among the dead on this precision cut debut EP. A loud and clear tribute to the HM-2 stoked chainsaw sect of Swedish death metal ‘Grave of the Damned‘ introduces brutality, gloom and modest melodicism into its brief but promising enough presence. This well-lain spread of familiar tropes manages to impress per its aggressive launch and reasonably authentic arrange, a feat from a promising troupe which captures the mad energetic launch of its lane while sustaining interest for its entire duration.

Tombal punched up through the soil in late 2025 inspired by classic Swedish death metal tones and the early 90’s style in general. The most recognizable fellowe among them is probably Luigi Cara per his presence in some reasonably known brutal death metal groups (Deathcrush, Cinererium et al.) over the last two decades and the band also includes bassist Massimiliano Falchi, who’d played in Spell of Decay with Cara, alongside drummer Luca Barone. Of course the frontman dominates this ~sixteen minute demonstration between the blisteringly loud guitar tone and such but overall the impact of this debut is how it toys around with classic Swedish death metal ideas without defaulting to the usual lazy, shit-pants riffing sub-genre fans are decades indoctrinated with at this point.

That is to say that, sure, this EP is glossy in its thunderous loudness and fat-cracking drum sound but note-for-note there is some due attention paid to authenticity (among the popular stuff, this doesn’t sound like Crematory) as well as a certain satisfying level of brutality applied. If you can imagine how the Sunlight Studios version of Vader‘s debut might’ve sounded remastered… a song like “Grave of the Damned” appears to approximate the thrashing intensity of said band within explosive Dismember-esque rally. Per that description don’t go in expecting something like ‘Beneath the Folds of Flesh‘ so much as Fleshcrawl‘s ‘Bloodsoul‘, carrying that big sound into a pummel. For my own taste the opener/title track offered a great first impression despite that familiar HM-2 buzz exploding throughout the hall.

“Cemeterial Death Worship” is probably the most compelling wield of this sound otherwise as rushed-at melodic riffs give currency to uncomplicated verses and the roar of the many-layered guitar sound create a brilliant sense of blitzed movement. Throw in a neatly harmonized guitar solo and Tombal really do reek of the post-‘n-roll era of Swedish death zeitgeist beyond the mid-90’s and they do so with minimal interest in moshable shlock along the way. “Funebral Furnace” is less interesting in cadence and there isn’t much to its semi-melodic riffcraft but the tunnel through closer “Cathedrals of Rot” bears far more promise for my taste, particularly the gloomed over stomp that strikes beyond the ~1:05 minute mark.

Despite this type of death metal having been running at high saturation + low effort fumes for decades Tombal‘s take offers thrilling enough chainsaw attack to entertain while capably sustaining the gravity of this fairly short release. It is more-or-less a preamble for a full-length slated for later this year, and no doubt all bodes well based on this material, though I’m hoping they phase out any simpler burners for the sake of either more complex, melodic or at least dynamic pieces rather than drop the usual bulldozer and call it good. Otherwise a loud-ass sound, precision cut performance and a relatively authentic style go a long way toward making this a proper charged introduction. A moderately high recommendation.

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