Arallu – Death Covenant
Arallu – Death Covenant
Hammerheart Records
Release Date: 11/11/22
Running Time: 38:00
Review by Paul Hutchings
7/10
The world of metal continues to expand. This offering is from a band who’ve been plying their trade for 25 years. I’d never heard of them!! Arallu are a five-piece black/death metal band who come from the urban Israeli settlement called Ma’ale Adummim. Named after the underworld kingdom in Mesopotamian mythology, they have been a constant in the underground extreme metal with six previous albums to their name.
Arallu combine several traditional Eastern sounds with their explosive metal, infusing ancient Sumerian and Middle Eastern instruments with blast beats, tremolo riffing and gruff vocals. At times the music is blisteringly aggressive, at other times eerily haunting. It’s a package that oozes chaotic originality and brings a blistering assault on the aural senses.
The album opens with deep, Eastern chants and a drum that beats in the deep. The tension builds rapidly, before the band kick into the opening song, ‘Prophecy of the Dead’. It’s instantly noticeable that Arullu aren’t your run of the mill extreme band. Tribal drum patterns, use of saz and darbuka and a blend of brutality and melodic passages make it a mystifying introduction to these veterans of the Israeli metal scene.
The music here is a real cacophony of noise, and at times it’s a challenge to pick out all the instruments which on occasion blend into a sheer wall of punishment. It’s when the band drift towards the more intricate and complex passages of work where they really shine. ‘Under Jerusalem’s Temple Mount’ for example, has a real Eastern flavour but still reverberates to double bass kicks and ferocious screams. Things improve when the vocals move to more emotive cleans, for the constant screams and roars are a bit overbearing.
‘Satanic Spirit’ is a struggle though. It’s a sluggish song that feels like too much has been poured into the same pot. And this is one of the challenges on this album – the constant addition of instruments that at times make things just a little messy in the audio field. When they move to more menacing and threatening styles, such as on ‘Mystical Sultan’, things improve.
Ultimately, whether this album will be of interest will depend on several factors. The time signatures are unpredictable, irregular and at times confusing. Yet there are atmospheric elements rarely heard from other bands. ‘Empire of Salt’ moves from crushing death metal to Middle Eastern creativity in an instant. The vocals include chanting, deep rich baritones, and choral parts as well as vicious screaming. It’s a bit of a smorgasbord of extreme delights. With plenty of high-speed energy, the album also has an intensely raw feel. It’s certainly one that I spent some time absorbing. It’s probably the best way to experience a band that have total credit for maintaining longevity.
‘Empire Of Salt’ Official Audio
TRACKLISTING:
01. End Ov Wars (Tikva)
02. Prophecy of the Dead
03. Ruler of the Seven Worlds
04. Under Jerusalem’s temple Mount
05. Satanic Spirit
06. Mystical Sultan
07. Desert Shadow will Rise
08. Humanity Death Embrace
09. Empire of Salt
10. Skeletons Battlefield
LINE-UP:
Butchered – Vocals, Guitars, Bass
Eylon B – Strings, Backing vocals, Percussion
Ofek Ominus – Guitars
Richard – Drums, Percussion
LINKS:
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