Tumulation – Haunted Funeral Creations
Tumulation – Haunted Funeral Creations
Hammerheart Records
Release Date: 04/08/23
Running Time: 33:08
Review by Oli Gonzalez
10/10
“Tumulation is the perfect Death/Doom band that will leave you craving for more”, I read as I opened the email with my next review assignment. “Perfect? Bold claim,” were my initial thoughts. I’ve heard a lot of bands over the years who have combined the slower, more deliberate and heavy elements of doom metal with the sheer ferocity and aggression of death metal. Some have done it well, some not so. These are two of my favourite genres so my expectations were high. So much so, I had to check out some of the singles from the band’s back catalogue. I say singles as (at the time of writing) the band have not yet released a full length album. Rather, “Haunted Funeral Creations” will be the band’s debut full-length effort. So I did what most of us do when you’re checking out a band for the first time; headed to Spotify. Here, one of the band’s singles will feature on the band’s upcoming album; ‘Shattered Under the Eclipse’.
Ok! Wow! These guys are not here to play! I’m struggling to find the words. All I can think of is… A disgusting wall of sludge and pure filth. Crushing riff after crushing riff. Each instrument sounding crisp and sitting splendidly in the mix. The vocals guttural and harsh, the guitars hypnotic and fear inducing. This is only one song too! Time to get my bearings before I dive into the rest of the unreleased album tracks.
I haven’t really introduced the band properly at this stage. Tumulation are a three-piece death-doom band based in San Diego, California, and appear to be a supergroup of members from other established bands in the area. This includes Conjureth. The band’s Facebook page describes them simply as ‘downtuned filth’. The band member names are anonymous. Perhaps they’d like us to just focus on the musical experience and let us form our own opinions? I’m on board with that. Based on the band’s single I had just listened to, while it certainly is not perfect, I was eager to get into the rest of the album.
If you’re looking for no-nonsense instrumental openings, ‘Emergent Chaos Spirals’ is perf- excellent (I nearly used the P word!). This sets the bar for the rest of the album and lets us know what they are all about.
As far as death-doom is concerned, they have the doom part down to a tee in ‘Astral Sickness’! Every simple yet brutally effective note from the drums, bass and guitar is played with frightening precision, creating wave after punishing wave of audio assault. Each riff is designed to pound you into submission. The assault continues in ‘Rorschach’. The song is different, but the theme is still the same; no bells or whistles, just brutally simple riffs played with violent intentions!
I haven’t really mentioned the vocals yet. While they are consistently heavy throughout the album, I find it interesting how they are seldom used. Perhaps to allow the listener to focus on the music itself, rather than lyrical content? I particularly enjoyed how the vocals were used almost as a fourth instrument in ‘Sterilizing Winds’. The growls lock in with the other instruments to create one unholy union of ear-busting noise. Delightful, and also prominent in ‘Rites Of Forgotten Misery’.
The penultimate song, ‘Bound to the Rakasha’, is up next. “Can I last 7 minutes and 24 seconds?” I thought to myself. My senses were pounded, especially during the slow, bludgeoning mid-passage. They really do put the doom in death-doom here! How only 3 musicians can be so loud and full I’ll never know. Mercifully, it’s over. ‘Abject Maelstrom Specters’ provides a much calmer instrumental respite. Just what we need after that onslaught.
Production wise? Well, I’ve no idea how to improve this. What’s to say? Everything just sounds perfectly in place. Yep, I know I started this review by slating the use of the word ‘perfect’ but here it’s appropriate. After all, the band have a distribution deal with Napalm Records; they don’t put out garbage after all!
So, is this album perfect? Nope, but it’s pretty damn close. “Haunted Funeral Creations” represents a remarkable encapsulation of all the finest extreme metal elements, prioritising clinical efficiency and bludgeoning power, tying it all into one masterfully crafted death-doom package.
TRACKLISTING:
01. Emergent Chaos Spirals
02. Shattered Under the Eclipse
03. Astral Sickness
04. Rorschach
05. Sterilizing Winds
06. Rites of Forgotten Misery
07. Bound to the Rakasha
08. Abject Maelstrom Specters
LINE-UP:
IM – Vocals, Guitar
FS – Guitar, Bass
WS – Drums
LINKS:
Disclaimer: This review is solely the property of Oli Gonzalez and Ever Metal. It is strictly forbidden to copy any part of this review, unless you have the strict permission of both parties. Failure to adhere to this will be treated as plagiarism and will be reported to the relevant authorities.
