Blade of Horus
Monumental Massacre

March 2016
Released: 2016, Lacerated Enemy Records
Rating: 2.5/5
Reviewer: Peter Atkinson

Formerly known as Eviscerator, these Sydney, Australia, tech-deathsters were redubbed Blade of Horus last year no doubt as a way to distance themselves from the crass brutal death metal implications of their former moniker. Probably a wise move.



There are a few hints of the band's old ways on their debut EP, namely in some of the song titles – i.e. “Succumb to the Overwhelming Stench of Necrophagia” or “Inhumane Experimentations” - and in frontman Eric Jenkins' occasional pig-squeal/gurgle-throated emanations. Indeed his vocals – which are guttural and caustic throughout, and typically delivered with hollered hardcore-like authority - are perhaps the most brutal aspect of the band's sound.



A few brief deathcore-ish breakdowns aside, however, Blade of Horus are pretty much textbook tech-death from a musical standpoint, with loads of flighty, flashy guitar gynmastics and solos, crazy-quilt tempo changes – ably guided here by mercenary drummer Kevin (Suffocation, etc.) Talley – and a boiling cauldron of riffs. Guitarists Ivan Ellis and James Buckman round out the band's still loose-knit ranks, and the EP seems geared primarily as a showcase for their impressive chops.



And though there is little that is terribly original or especially mind-blowing on Monumental Massacre's seven tracks, the band do manage to pack quite a bit into a viciously efficient package. The songs are dense and tight, averaging about 3:30 per, and make up in raw energy and razor-sharp precision what they may lack in hookiness or depth.



As such, the EP is an effective means of pointing to the direction Blade of Horus are headed. In time, perhaps they can do something a bit more new, exciting or different with it.