Relics Of Humanity – Absolute Dismal Domain Review

[Cover art by Sergey Liakh aka Siarhei]

If you prowled around these parts last year, you may have noticed our collective fell deeper into the corpse-clogged abyss of brutal death metal a bit more heavily. Defeated Sanity snagged our number one spot for the title of Bestest Most Wonderfullest Heaviest Of Metals Albums Of The 2,024th Year Of Our Goop Lord Satan, the likes of Theurgy, Submerged and Replicant were all over individual lists, and there were enough New Standard Elite releases in people’s demo/EP lists that you could understandably start to think that perhaps we have some sort of shady backdoor deal with them. After six weeks of best-of lists and looking forward to what we’re anticipating for 2025, it’s time to return to form and get the reviews portion of our work moving again. Of course, the most natural fit for that is to pummel January into dust with more brutality. Why stop the vomit train now? The ever-reliable Willowtip was more than prepared to help us continue our journey to the bottom of the trash can that pings every snare with Relics Of Humanity’s third full-length and first in 11 years.

Release date: January 31, 2025. Label: Willowtip Records.
Part of Absolute Dismal Domain‘s success is that it relies largely on a much “slower” take on BDM, relying on a sense of doom and dread through slow chugs and mid-pace churn. Blast beats and rollicking snare runs are used somewhat sparingly, making them all the more impactful when they do appear. The title track is an excellent example of this as it slowly grinds down the listener early and then even utilizes empty spaces between guitar parts to let Flo Butcher’s vocals roar to prominence. The song starts to have grinding, steady tremolos like something off of Catch-33 while the kick drums relentlessly patter, but even all of that speed is used in a way to feel like a suffocating crush rather than a blitz. That makes the blasting violence that opens “Smoldering Of Seraphim” hit all the harder. The song switches from a grooving swing into frantic fills and blasts, creating overwhelming chaos before it goes dummy-simple with a slow-chugging, plodding beatdown.

Knowing just when to unleash the snare is one of drummer Vladislav Vorozhtsov’s greatest skills. The gravity rolls into an isolated guitar riff before unleashing Dying Fetus-style ultra-low guest vocals on “His Creation That No Longer Exists” is monstrous. The rollicking snare backing the sustained bellow on “In The Name Of Ubiquitous Gloom” (amazing title by the way), is hideously good. The fills and runs that kick open the door for the apocalyptic, echoing atmosphere at the end of “Summoning Of Those Who Absorbed” makes it feel like the pivotal moment in some direly collapsing society in a sci-fi movie. Relics Of Humanity relies on a few atmospheric touches throughout that help give the album a stronger end-times feel. The end of “Paralyzing The Light II” shifts the guitar’s sound like it’s going to turn into a lead but instead sustains ugly noise that layers in a sense of gloom. The closing track, “Dominion,” is purely desolate and sounds like the music that would play right as Doom Guy finally kills the final boss of Hell.

Despite being a four-piece, Sergey Liakh is credited with all songwriting, lyrics, guitar, and production/mix work. Absolute Dismal Domain is intended to be a concept album about the “absolute ubiquitous annihilation of light, both spiritually (god) and physically (sun and stars),” according to their press materials. What’s crafted here certainly sounds like that, with suffocating sound and songwriting that feels abysmal. The balance of drums is effective, particularly in creating a sense of the chaotic when the snare really roles and dominates the mix. Butcher’s bellowing vocals have so much power and come through potently. The guitars, however, are a bit thinner and fuzzier than this style might call for, leaving them sapped of a bit of heft that could take these songs to another level. I imagine this stuff will translate really well to the stage and truly feel like the end of the world, but the overall sound is a touch quiet here. By no means a dealbreaker, but perhaps getting an outsider to help take that element of the band could be beneficial for the next release.

Minor gripes aside, Relics Of Humanity is helping us kick off 2025 in the most appropriate way possible with its brutal charms. A perfect harbinger of the musical violence and hideousness we’re desperately looking for in the 12 months ahead!

Posted by Spencer Hotz

Admirer of the weird, the bizarre and the heavy, but so are you. Why else would you be here?

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