Review: “ΤΕΦΡΑ” by Penny Coffin

Pronounced “Tefra” and meaning human ashes, in Greek “ΤΕΦΡΑ” marks the debut offering to the Metal Gods from Penny Coffin, a Scottish and Greek Death Metal trio comprising Daniel Paton (guitars and vocals), Joseph Edward Kelly (guitars, vocals and bass) and Panagiotis Rodopoulos who you may know from his work in Bionic Origin and Dominicide (drums). Produced and mixed in house by the trio themselves, the EP is mastered by the acclaimed Dan Lowndes (Cruciamentum) at Resonance Sound Studios and as such, Penny Coffin join such underground alumaneries as Mortiferum, Spectral Voice and Pallbearer, in benefiting from the work of one of Extreme Metals finest engineers.

The notorious Penny Coffin homeless shelters of Victorian London is where this Death Metal trio take their name, drawing inspiration from classic Death Metal and creating a monster of their own. A thunderously relentless percussive performance begins the affair with “Smog” perhaps owning a debt to Black Metal with its blastings. They’re accompanied by some seriously abrasive guitar work but it’s not not without its haunting melodies which set it apart from some more straightforward opposition. There are obvious comparisons with the spitting, snarling one man Black Metal project that is Snorlax as well as Twitch of the Death Nerve, the sonic solar eclipse of this new project sharing similar territory to both while being very much it’s own entity as it turns your World black. “Bootlicker” is your classic oxymoron, the kit work giving the impression of something higher tempo while the guitars crawl through the primordial sludge with some skull crushing vocals from beyond the void creating an eerie sense of impending doom. “ΤΕΦΡΑ” may have been created in splendid isolation by the individual musicians before being brought together but you’d struggle to tell without insider knowledge and that is equally true of the bands Geography. Underneath the sonic weight there is plenty of headbangable groove in “Confinement“, a longer cut which it’s easy to get lost in, the mournful meloncholic solo will have you swaying like a marionette. A nasty, gritty affair, Penny Coffin serve to remind us that Death is only the beginning… [7/10]

Track listing

1. Smog
2. Bootlicker
3. Confinement

“ΤΕΦΡΑ” by Penny Coffin is out 16th April 2021 and is available for pre-order over at bandcamp