Inter Arma | Bandcamp | Facebook
Released on March 19th through Relapse Records
Inter Arma are one of Relapse Record's newest signings and are gearing up to release their album Sky Burial. I admit I'd never heard of them before Relapse signed them up. Although I've since checked out their debut album Sundown and EP Destroyer.
The promise and experimentation of their debut has been fully realised here. Believe me, you will be hearing plenty more of this great band in the year ahead and beyond. What makes Inter Arma stand out is their genre defying sound. Influenced it would seem by prog-rock/sludge metal/classic rock and a hint of black metal they don't sit comfortably in any one of those styles.
The sound Inter Arma have crafted however is pretty unique and I think best described as simply "heavy". Pointless to try and explain it otherwise, without getting bogged down in tags and name dropping. From the pounding blasts and epic density of tracks like opener 'The Survival Fires' to the acoustic strumming and experimental sounds of 'Love Absolute'. This is a vast album with songs at times over ten minutes and incorporating various shifts in dynamics. 'Destroyer', originally from the EP, lives up to its name. Stomping everything in its path with sludge filled menace.
Around halfway through Sky Burial you're greeted by 'sblood' an absolute beast of a song. An explosive cacophony of drums, spiralling riffs and bellowed vocals it begins in uncompromising fashion. At approximately 3 minutes in the cacophony intensifies. It builds until it feels like you've strapped a couple of jet engines to you ears. With a giant face melting burst of a riff, the tectonic plate shifting track rumbles to a close.
Elsewhere the subtle prog influence on 'The Long Road Home' makes a gentler but no less of an impact. Featuring some excellent soulful guitar, weaving its way around your senses. The track shifts towards the end to incorporate more furious drumming and heavier sounds. Its a common theme on Sky Burial, tracks blend together variations of styles seamlessly and naturally.
In all everything on Sky Burial is fascinating and essential. The title track that closes the album in monolithic style. The acoustic ambience of 'The Long Road Home (Iron Gate)', which is essentially an interlude is still gripping. At times classic rock collides with modern extreme metal and nothing feels out of place.
Inter Arma have crafted one of the best albums to be released on Relapse Records in recent years. That in itself should tell you all you need to know. Sky Burial is released on March 19th and can be pre-ordered here.
