Signaled by doom’s tolling behind unseen gates all manner of slow-writhing terrors streak the skies a sickly red-orange hue as our cosmic keeper’s bodies cut steeply angled coronal slash through the von Kármán line in-whorl. Vessels for an ancient power astir by the sound (and aghast at the sight) of primitivism in erasure San José, Costa Rica-based death metal quartet ASTRIFEROUS bend and glint with the thorned gnarl of Eldritch cunning on this diabolically achieved sophomore full-length album. Immersed in the gloom of a realm in permanent eclipse ‘Atavistic Unraveling‘ appears both heavier and more contorted than before, radiating within the clarity afforded fresh exposure. Tunneling within their wiles with unpredictive purpose the band offer prime mutation of ‘old school’ death metal au fait taste unto unnerving, bizarre twine herein.

Astriferous formed circa 2018 by way of folks known for Engraved, Bloodsoaked Necrovoid and more recently Candarian aiming for their own cosmic-horrified form of early 90’s ‘old school’ death metal. Since I’d covered the earlier history of the band well enough in review of their debut full-length album (‘Pulsations From the Black Orb‘, 2023) the short hand version of their sound resembles still-rupturing early 90’s Finnish death metal (Adramelech, Abhorrence), peak Floridian tides (Morbid Angel, Deicide) b/w some of early Immolation‘s technical jabs. At the time I’d set their work at #2 on my Top 75 Albums of the Year and could still go on about what an ideal they’d captured on that first release.

With ‘Atavistic Unraveling‘ Astriferous veer weirder, heavier and more crisply rendered with each boon prioritized in that order. Though their transformation is substantial in application it doesn’t escape distinctly ‘old school’ death metal in its stylization as they’ve not melted away the stinking rot of old per their new gear. Part of this greater mutation potentially comes from a change in their line-up as guitarist/co-vocalist Federico Gutiérrez (Bloodsoaked Necrovoid) departed in 2023 with Umbra Conscienta‘s E.S. joining soon after on second guitar, possibly accounting for the more gnarled-up thread conjured herein. Otherwise they appear to have worked with Dan Lowndes @ Resonance Sound Studios once again for the mastering (b/w engineering from Andrés Corrales @ 3/4 Estudios, mixing from Andrew Oswald @ Paradise Recorders) as we find a larger space rendered with bigger guitar layers folded in and more low-end in the mix overall. It is the same signature activated only more refined and deeper engaged in the Finndeath stalk of their gig.

‘Atavistic Unraveling‘ generally follows the dynamic running order established within ‘Pulsations From the Black Orb‘ wherein their study of classic extreme metal arrange yields a two-sided experience which steadily introduces nodes of vaguely referential motioning, blunt abstraction and doomed grandeur within its overall design. This means opener “Carriers of the Curse” is the grind into view, a chromatic slug unto scaling crawl meant to fill a room with sweat-whipping hair and threshing bodies. Though the piece is more of a bully than expected outright we do get more than a few doses of surrealistic verve (re: ~2:51 minutes in) along the way, preparing for the chasmic ladder which is constructed later on. The thrashing push of this song is less precedence set than it is a pressurization, opening the field with momentum in sight of the expanse.

Standout “The Floating Catacombs” is arguably where the Florida death metal impulse of Astriferous fully kicks in, invoking something like Nocturnus or Eternal Dirge as they incorporate atmospheric keys/synth which eventually weave into their signature Demilichian step. Though you might be thinking of ‘Blessed are the Sick’ for that main riff the mind-wrinkling lead they crack into ~2:23 minutes in nearly invokes ‘Formulas Fatal to the Flesh‘ adjacency, a float through alien process which only accentuates the trample and twist nature of the song. This is only a hint of the creeped and cavernous sledging ahead as most of Side A accumulates in an almost conversational way, flowing piece-by-piece without interruption per clever linkage.

“Dissolution of Eternity” is the first of a few songs on ‘Atavistic Unraveling‘ which develop Astriferous‘ semi-dissonant bent, a skronking and mid-paced heave in chasmic space which helps to characterize the descent through the full listen. A mild infestation more than it is a sea-change, their phrasal chop spreads very lightly into the middle of the full listen, another weapon to wield rather than stylistic abandon. “Proto Embryo (The Third Tribulation)” carries that torch most readily but again in the context of higher speed Finnish death warp (ah via ‘The Fall‘) given to the technical abandon already idealized on the way there. There is a satisfying bluntness to the shapes created within this context, just angularly set enough to disturb expectations but not enough to collapse the sensation of their work.

“Arcane Demonomania” is not the apex of the quartet’s complex and estranged work on the full listen yet it’d nonetheless been one of several pieces to consistently grip my ear on each pass through. Though it appears to be a sort of speed metallic swinging dirge within its opening vexation its harder burst through movements somewhat recall the wrathful pulse of stuff like Rotten Tomb, probably for the sake of yet being fresh in ear and richly realized. Otherwise these two Side B affixed pieces (incl. “Mnemonic Phenomena”) accumulate unto a sort of preamble for the 8+ minutes of skull-churning doom afforded by closer “Resonance Cascade”. Quick-change riffs, several movements cut out of the blue, and more cosmic keys interlaced all build up into a representative, cumulative sort of grand endpoint for ‘Atavistic Unraveling‘ where it feels as if the gate is finally unlocked just as the end arrives.

As was the case with Astriferous‘ previous album wrapping my head around ‘Atavistic Unraveling‘ pulled my mind in many different satisfying directions over the course, this time perhaps even more considering all they’ve brought in addition. Tightened production values and expanded ouevre go a long way toward created an experience which is potentially easily read at a glance but riddled with depth when engaged note-for-note. Without veering too boldly astray of ‘old school’ death metal structured compendium their work remains engaging, repeatable and brutal enough to rile the senses through even its oddest-cut tirades. Sealed with stare-worthy cover art from Necrodevourer this work offers a well above-average ideal set for traditioned-but-seeking death metal in 2026. A very high recommendation.

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