Tormentor Tyrant – Tormentor Tyrant Review

About 70% of the OSDM revival that has overtaken our beloved scene over the last few years falls into two main camps:

1. Hideous thick riffage that often lurches as much as it pummels and gets tagged with descriptors like “cavernous”
2. Just straight-up Bolt Thrower impersonations

Sure, there’s also plenty of Carcass worship and albums created from blood offerings sacrificed at the altars of Morbid Angel’s madness, but you know who seems to get somewhat overlooked when it comes to bands wearing their influences upon their logo-plastered longsleeves? Deicide and their opening trilogy of god-smiting tunes that sounded like they were crafted in the deepest circles of Dante’s Inferno, that’s who. Perhaps it’s because Glen Benton seems like a bit of a wang, and their output since 1995 has been wildly inconsistent, but that silly cross-burned forehead should be set aside and more bands should be interested in being able to justifiably include Deicide in the FFO statements on their press materials.

Finland’s Tormentor Tyrant is happy to be legion with Florida death metal and not just in terms of style, but in sound too. Hit play on this self-titled debut EP and you’ll think to yourself, “Did Scott Burns produce this?” Then you’ll have to respond to yourself, “Of course he didn’t, you furry-knuckled moose licker!” But be sure to forgive yourself for the error because the production on Tormentor Tyrant foregoes the typical meaty bottom-end of today for the thinner brash sounds of the early 90s that exude pure raucous violence.

This trio is perfectly content to transport you back to the days when death metal was basically just wild thrash riffs covered in zombie barf with some unhinged animal of a man rabidly barking over the top of it. In fact, the primary vocal attack is a hefty dose of modern Barney Greenway shouted through the vocal folds of 90’s Benton and it’s just gloriously perfect for the music at hand. They also aren’t afraid of dipping the vocals into the toilet or kicking a goblin for a few screeches along the way; those little dalliances in disgust are a much-appreciated spice in the sick.

Killer riffs abound on this 5-song, 17-minute battering, but what really helps Tormentor Tyrant stand out is its ability to steadily transform their songs and smoothly flow from section to section despite very short runtimes. “Primal Evil” starts with a burst of stop-start pummel into a blistering tremolo run before dropping back into a beast of a chugging thrash riff and that’s all in the first 15 seconds without any semblance of feeling disjointed. And man, that song serves as a great reminder that a song can have a memorable chorus section that will get stuck in your head without needing a melodic hook. There is a brief bit of squiggly guitar work on that song that also hints at an ability to write some nonsense solos that Kerry King would scowl and nod at, but it doesn’t get a chance to develop. It will be interesting to see if lead work is something they incorporate more moving forward.

The other four songs have plenty to offer too. “All-Seeing Eye” pins its ears back and revels in pure speed while featuring a nice little bass break that makes the ensuing chaos all the more satisfying. On the other hand, closer “Galaxy-Wide Terror” lets the mid-tempo ride and makes pumping your fists inevitable. Naturally, Tormentor Tyrant included “Tormentor Tyrant” on Tormentor Tyrant, so you know they’re legit and that one offers a perfect distillation of their sound as the opening salvo.

For all the reference to the Florida legends, what makes Tormentor Tyrant even better is that it actually manages to be more fun than half the output of Deicide since the turn of the century. Put this one in your collection; you won’t regret it.