Sometimes, all the body needs is good old-fashioned, no-nonsense, no-frills death metal. Turkish death metal horde Engulfed has exactly what the doctor ordered. I was impressed by their debut album back in 2017, and enjoyed their EP three years later, but I haven’t been this blown away by a no-frills death metal album in ages. Unearthly Litanies of Despair has a lot going for it: riffs, cool solos, more riffs, an evil atmosphere, and even more riffs. Emblazoned by a love of old school death metal, particularly in the school of Immolation, Engulfed seek to bludgeon you into nothingness.
Without wasting any time, “In the Abyss of Death’s Obscurity” starts with a clean guitar riff before boiling over in ferocity with Serkan Niron’s monstrous vocals. His performance is phenomenal throughout the Litanies, and his rumbling growl is among the better ones I’ve heard in the many, many old-school worship death metal albums I’ve listened to. Each song from here on out has its own style of earth-shattering chaos it brings to the table, thanks in no small part to guitarists Mustafa Gürcalioğlu (Diabolizer, Hyperdontia, etc) and Can Yakay Darbaz (Diabolizer, Burial Invocation, etc). The combination of mean, fat-bottomed riffs alongside dual blistering solos makes for a fantastic listen. The bass presence throughout the album is delightfully rumbly as well, giving songs an extra layer of heft. It’s hard to pick an album highlight, since every song on here is great, but “Infernal Desolation” has a bit of that extra flavor that keeps me wanting to replay it over and over again.
I do think the production could use improvement, though. Unearthly Litanies of Despair often sounds hollow, when its intensity could greatly benefit from sounding much fuller. This issue is extremely minor, though. Engulfed have created something that will rouse the older death metal purist who is disappointed with the increasing frequency of exploratory death metal bands, and proves that you don’t have to have a bunch of flashy tricks up your sleeves to write good music: just write some goddamn riffs, man.
