Unhallowed Deliverance – Of Spectres and Strife [Things You Might Have Missed 2024]

Unhallowed Deliverance – Of Spectres and Strife [Things You Might Have Missed 2024]

One of the cool things about our wee community here at Angry Metal Guy is the constant comment-sharing, name-dropping, and recommendations of albums that for whatever reason we didn’t wind up getting promotional material for. And sure, some of the namedrops can be wildly out of context in the comment sections they arrive upon, but we appreciate them nonetheless. One such comment (cannot recall who it was from, unfortunately) steered me onto the hugely impressive, and impressively huge, debut LP from unheralded German death dealers, Unhallowed Deliverance. Released back in May, Of Spectres and Strife punched well above its modest profile and independent, underground status, and deserves attention upon receiving the Things You Might Have Missed treatment. Whereas numerous big-hitting death metal albums of 2024 have featured especially brutal, experimental and/or dissonant varieties to much acclaim, Unhallowed Deliverance unleashed something a little different, bolstered with the songwriting tools and swagger to appeal to a broad range of metalheads and death fiends in the process.

Boasting a rugged, dense and ultra-modern death metal sound, Unhallowed Deliverance produce a formula not easy to pin down. This slippery sucker skillfully weaves tech, slam, blackened, melodeath, and brutal death elements into a heaving, steamrolling framework, further boosted by slammy, wrecking ball grooves, a smidgen of atmospheric deathcore bombast, and bevy of chunky, intricate riffs and hooks to keep you clambering back for more. Influences vary across the extreme spectrum, recalling heavyweights such as Archspire, Dying Fetus, Cattle Decapitation, Carnosus and The Black Dahlia Murder, all while carving their own path. Make no mistake, these are merely reference points, Unhallowed Deliverance feature enough of their own cool quirks and creativity to forge a solid identity. Following a somewhat cheesy, acoustic-backed introduction piece, “They Will Eat Us Raw” kicks the album into gear, showcasing the band’s uniformly tight musicianship and bright, punchy modern production job amidst a barrage of stuttering, headbangable riffs, sharp tempo shifts, and Decapitated-esque tech grooves.

The fun continues across the album’s tight duration, a versatile rollercoaster journey across the modern death spectrum, where snappy bass licks, darkened strains of melody, and ripping solos tear holes through otherwise brutal, chunky and technical workouts. Longer form tunes (“Hope Drowning,” “Dereliction”) allow the songwriting elasticity to stretch into intriguing dimensions and progressive territories while maintaining their shape-shifting, aggressive stylings. Listeners craving brutality are well served on concise slam-infected bruisers (“We Slither,” Bottomless Pit”) to do the likes of Benighted and Wormhole proud. Frontman Arthur Haltrich matches the album’s diverse delivery with a strong all-round performance, shifting pitches with ease, balancing predominant death growls and uber-deep gurgles with higher-pitched blackened variations.

Of Spectres and Strife is a remarkably confident and assured debut, boding extremely well for the band’s future development. The songwriting impresses in how Unhallowed Deliverance effortlessly incorporate the various elements and progressive inclinations into a tight, cohesive batch of memorable songs. Of Spectres and Strife leans hard into meaty grooves, devastating slams and technical nuance, however, the album delivers on multiple fronts with twists aplenty and ample riffs, thrashy salvos and blast beats to satiate the thirst of more traditional death metal fans. Don’t miss out on one of 2024’s brightest death metal debuts.

Tracks To Check Out: “They Will Eat Us Raw,” “We Slither,” “Mass Grave Doxology,” and “Dereliction”



Kenstrosity

Germany’s unheralded brutal tech-deathcore quintet Unhallowed Deliverance quietly unleashed the biggest deathcore banger of the year, and nobody talks about it enough. Except, of course, for me and Holdeneye. The two of us, brothers in arms, work in tandem to spread our righteous message to the unwashed masses. Of Spectres and Strife not only kicks the pants off of similar albums released by more seasoned musicians, but also forces me to adjust my expectations for future releases in this field to a higher bar. That is the kind of elevation I look for when new records fall into my lap.

Unhallowed Deliverance are unmistakably deathcore, but they are also heavily moved by the crushing mass of brutal death and the unrestricted exuberance of tech death. Occupying the same space as well-known bands like Fit for an Autopsy, Cutterred Flesh, and later Mental Cruelty, Unhallowed Deliverance shoehorn an unreal number of nasty death metal riffs into their especially hook-laden core. Breakdowns and slams appear only occasionally—and often don’t stay for long—but they hit hard every time. In short, all of the basic building blocks of the style are accounted for and in excellent working order. However, Of Spectres and Strife’s songwriting sets Unhallowed Deliverance apart from their peers. It shouldn’t be possible for a debut record to sound this tight, this effective, and this epic. Yet, thanks to incredibly smart arrangements, momentous pacing, and exciting dynamics, Of Spectres and Strife makes an impeccable first impression.

Of Spectres and Strife by Unhallowed Deliverance

Of Spectres and Strife progresses in two distinct, but connected, acts. In the first half, choice cuts like “They Will Eat Us Raw” and “Treatise on the Lowest Form of Man” do their best to hold Unhallowed Deliverance’s winning hand close to the chest. Even so, these early numbers offer highly compelling passages and intimidating levels of heft. Syncopated riffs, swaggering percussion, and multifaceted growls and screams help reinforce this. However, when the work’s bisecting epic, “Hope, Drowning,” descends on the scene, a clever shift occurs. In this masterful piece of crushing heft, the deathcore-heavy first act of the record ends, transforming into a quasi-melodic, climactic explosion of ridiculous riffs and killer hooks that I’d sooner expect from top-tier The Black Dahlia Murder material.

This face-distorting burst of momentum carries through the entire back half, energizing the album’s standout trio of unqualified bangers, “Bottomless Pit,” SotY contender “Devil in the Basement,” and “Mass Grave Doxology.” From there, a second epic wraps the record up in a bloody, flayed bow of unchecked brutality. “Dereliction” boasts storytelling chops that rival Shadow of Intent‘s concept-driven methodology, but with chunkier grooves and devastating slams. In much the same way that “Hope, Drowning” ushered in a subtle transformation of form and features, so too does “Dereliction” as Unhallowed Deliverance flexes their beefiest brutal death muscles—and hint at what listeners might expect from a follow-up.

In the end, Unhallowed Deliverance not only exceeded my high expectations but redefined them. Songwriting like this is so few and far between in this genre. But then again, it doesn’t seem fair to pigeonhole the band into the standard deathcore/tech-death box. They are much more than that, and Of Spectres and Strife is the proof.

Tracks to Check Out: “They Will Eat Us Raw,” “Treatise on the Lowest Form of Man,” “Devil in the Basement,” “Dereliction”

The post Unhallowed Deliverance – Of Spectres and Strife [Things You Might Have Missed 2024] appeared first on Angry Metal Guy.

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