Depravity and ruin are rampant among our foul species, and EXAVERSUM has mercilessly channeled those tendencies into a second full anti-humanitarian act from within Mexico’s ravaging lands. Enmity advances to the militant drumming of “Windward March” before charging ahead on the title track, and a fierce arsenal is wielded during its attack, where blast beats drive cold searing riffs that integrate chugged and tremolo shifts. These variations coincide with different percussive tactics to conjure a turbulent effect, which culminates in soloing to seal the eminence of this lead rite, and distinct cavernous beats reverberate atmospherically in its doomy aftermath.
A more epic tone proceeds to rocking paces on “Et Serpent Pit,” further demonstrating the impact of rhythm on aural dynamics throughout, and some calculated drum irregularities give the momentum a flow while riffing intensifies. The overall abrasiveness is matched by a lower style of vocal rasp, and here it capably swells to compound a menace building in heavy progressions. Sung techniques also rise with an ancient spirit that finds harmony among an arpeggiated trance, and the hellscapes are enhanced when a clean-stringed outro with organs follows a collision of bells and thunder. A noted course is marked amid the rhythmic riff forms of “Ambulans Vulneratus,” with certain shades of turmoil and dread evoked across their multitude, and those influences transfer to dark-aged tremolo melodies that push onward into the vastness.
An array of vibrations unfolds on “Non Prophets,” where the bleak dissonance from chord and tremolo masses crosses waves of arpeggiated splendor, and percussive intricacies are observed as they progress toward a heavy striding shift. Bygone eras of stone and steel emerge ambiently when it approaches “Through the Ashes of Time,” and atmosphere continues exerting influence with a similarly epic rise near its end, along with bells to further emphasize the menacing arpeggiations drawing focus throughout. Those sinister forces are also pronounced on “Black Sun Soul,” with malice glaring in sweeps amid the wrath amassed through detailed progressions, and this becomes heightened by patterns exhibiting frantic-noted proficiency after breaking the havoc for a gloomy interlude.
“Immanence” forwards an ethereal presence with acoustic lines that give contrast to the past two dark conjurations, and it proceeds with a notable rawness in hypnotic fret sequences, which harmonize with heavier currents for a grand development punctuated by euphoric leadwork. Many elements are gathered for a decisive onslaught on “Dyrnwyn,” including a warrior essence in sung vocal areas carried alongside icy riff strikes, and another level of wizardry courses through the haunting melodic descent into its battle-torn outro. The forging between aural variety and tortuously arranged structures ultimately extends the vitality of EXAVERSUM’s style, making Caterva Anti Elite an effort with much to be admired among underground legions.
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