Purgatory
LUCIFERIANISM

February 2005
Released: 2004, Animate Records
Rating: 3.5/5
Reviewer: Luxi Lahtinen

The German Death Metal quartet Purgatory are not newcomers to the Death Metal scene. The bands first release, a 7” E.P. titled PSYCHOPATHIA SEXUALIS came out on the small label Perverted Taste as early as 1994. Since those days Purgatory have done a few more 7-inchers and 3 full-length albums. So we can surely consider them as quite experienced pioneers from the German Death Metal scene, can’t we? Unfortunately I have somehow succeeded in missing them for all these years.



Purgatorys 4th record, LUCIFERIANISM, is a sort of milk and cookies release. I mean, if you have ever been fond of Death Metal, even if in smaller doses, you should quite well know already how this German Purgatory tastes. Purgatory’s Death Metal tastes indeed quite familiar, having actually a necessary amount of true, old school Death Metal spirit involved in it, with a fairly good load of striking Death Metal blasts and solid, attacking riffs that are meant to kick you under your belly in a hurting way. Pure European Death Metal is what this is, full of potential and should surely fulfill most Death Metal fanatics in a pleasing enough way if you don’t demand too much from your Death Metal.





The band seems to have fun when playing their stuff as the flow of the songs on LUCIFERIANISM sounds kinda natural for them and not a bit forced at all. Such fast tempo cuts as “Death World Struggle”, “In Fervent Eyes” and “The Serpent Creation” are all quite damn enjoyable Death Metal stormers. They rage more effective than a room full of blood-dripping headless chickens! They do their job convincingly enough by putting my neck muscles to the ultimate test.



Talking about some reference points as far as the nearest comparisons for Purgatory are concerned, they are Germany’s answer to the Polish Death Metal combo Vader. There’s actually quite a few similarities between them musically.



Again, I was glad to discover these German Death Metal mongers Purgatory ... finally! It was about time, eh? To put everything into a shorter description about them: Heavy and brutal old school Death Metal is what they do. It’s played passionately and ambitiously and many of you should find that appealing.