Culted
Oblique To All Paths

April 2014
Released: 2014, Relapse Records
Rating: 4.0/5
Reviewer: Metal-Rules.com UK Team

Culted are a quartet whose members are scattered across different continents and whose singular vision on creating a cinematic take on Blackened Doom unifies them for their eagerly anticipated follow up release Oblique To All Paths.



Wading in slowly with dissonant guitars, ‘Brooding Hex’ crashes down within the first couple of minutes with a strong weightiness. Full of churning riffs and eerie effects, their unique take on Doom Metal is one that sucks you in like a vacuum. The track progresses in its dark tonality with little respite as the sinister soudscapes churn back and forth with deep throated growls and layers of distortion. The haunting melodies magnify around half way adding to the claustrophobic air that resonates throughout this opening track.



‘Illuminati’ opens with a spoken dialogue which seems to reflect a political stand point from the band’s music. This is cut short with gruelling vocals and mammoth sounding guitars that are full of density as the distorted vocals remain tortured throughout



The sweeping desolation of ‘Intoxicant Immuration’ gives rise to an apocalyptic landscape in which decay and destruction are evoked through further use of spoken dialogue as the shuddering drums beat endlessly away.



Much of the record, follows in the same format with ‘March of Wolves’ as the morbid sounding guitar layers drive onward to the ghastly aura of ‘Transmittal’ with its proggy undertones and cinematic scope.



The record departs with the gritty ‘Jeremiad’ which unfolds with distorted waves and demonic shrieks. Full of colossal sounding guitars and war induced drums the engulf your ears, this final destruction is not for the faint hearted.



To say this is an overwhelming piece of music is a vast understatement. What is found is a sprawling and engrossing venture into the darkest corners of Blackened Doom, one that not only consumes the listening into a void but will imprint its visual landscapes upon your mind and leave you stranded there . Whilst this may remain inaccessible for some metal fans out there, this is a rewarding piece of art that will demands re visiting time and time again to absorb the full impact. ;



Review by Ben Spencer