Pillars of Damnation

I have really been enjoying Temple Nightside's run of albums. They are not groundbreaking or original, they are just fun slabs of murky, Blackened Death Metal with echoing, hollow production jobs that make them sound like they were recorded in a tomb. Their last album was a bit cleaner and more sharply produced, but I am glad to see this one gets back to the sepulchral vibe of The Hecatomb.

This album sounds more Death Metal than the band has in the past, simply by virtue of having a heavier, deeper guitar sound mixed in with the spacious, echoing nature of the overall recording. Mixed in with the booming bass lines and the low rasp of the vocals, everything gathers together in a blistering wall of evil sound. Temple Nightside are not fast, not technical, and not really original, but their shit just overpowers you with massive atmosphere, and that makes it stand out.