Berlin death metallers Teratoma follow up on their 2022 debut Purulent Manifestations with their sophomore release Longing Voracity. Taking the swampy sound invented by Obituary, their debut was an intriguing enough release which demonstrated a band well versed in old school death metal.
Longing Voracity cranks the riffs up to 10 and continues to expand on their debut. From the off, after an atmospheric brief opener, it’s a full on riff fest as the title track rips out in buzzsaw style. There’s even a hint of melody within the chainsaw licks, and it’s clear the band want to look for a much darker sound. Vocals reach Chris Barnes levels, although do weirdly evolve into vomiting sounds at times.
These little inflections aside, the tracks are much more fully formed here. ‘Chaotic Bewilderment’ could have come off an early Sepultura album as its riff rattles along like a careening train coming off the tracks. The band are also unafraid to explore different tempo levels in the same track too, demonstrating an intelligence to the songwriting. ‘Ravaged And Absorbed’ is a great example of this.
Where previously the band felt a little unsure where to take the music, here there’s a confidence which shines through. The music is more powerful and widescreen, although still retains the murky, swampy atmosphere that pervaded the debut. Clean guitar solos break through providing stark melodic moments to the incessant riffing.
Teratoma can do full on brutality too as ‘Circle Of Perdition’ testifies. Switching from doom laden riffs to full pelt horror, it’s a non-stop circus of terror as they truly ramp up the gore. They follow this with ‘Interim’, a brief atmospheric reverie with added flute. It’s this that gives the album such a dynamic feel and you sense that the band will do well to explore this territory more in future. It’s not long though, before they are back in familiar territory with the monolithic ‘Festering Realm’.
On this second album, Teratoma have developed exponentially from their debut, and show flashes that they might just be in this for the long haul. The little progressive flourishes see them burst out of the swamp with a much more sophisticated sound. It’s a dense, far album that uses dynamics well but whilst always keeping one ear to the classic old school death metal sound. An excellent release.
