Review: “Mechalith” by Djinn-Ghül
Following the well trodden path of the Soothsayers of old, Djinn-Ghül have foreseen a dystopian future that bares a resemblance to our current existence, one of industrial nightmares and corruption destroying the very fabric of existence. Split between Venezuela and the United States, the duo was formed by multi instrumentalist Grant Nachbur (Nephrectomy, ex-Ritual Aesthetic) and vocalist Junior Patiño (Rotten Vomit, Voraraephilia) in 2016 and in the five years they have been working together have unveiled two full length albums in 2017’s “Wander Not” and 2020’s “Sordes Pyramis” with 2019’s EP “Exo Sin” sandwiched between them. Each one sees the duo develop on an underlying concept of wanting to create a evolved iteration of Death Metal that is extreme and unconventional so as to dissolve any pre-conceived notions that a listener may have in advance…
…the darkness begins with “Ore & Fluid” which has the beating black heart of Industrial Death Metal with programmed evil augmenting riffs that are reminiscent of the kind of work that Fear Factory mastermind Dino Cazares might put in should he be energized by a thousand litres of a World famous energy drink. They’re packed with tectonic plate shifting groove and are accompanied by a high octane artillery shelling of relentlessness courtesy of programmed drums that are a couple of notches above what a decent Black or Death Metal drummer might be able to produce with the exception of perhaps Kevin Talley. Bursts of searing intensity that make way for bleak and cold industrial sounds before breaking back, which gives an altogether bigger punch. Djinn-Ghül are the perfect symbiosis of man and machine in a science fiction horror story, destroying the World around them one riff at a time. Patiño is the kind of vocalist that Cazares would kill for in his band as he delivers throat splitting uncleans with great range, bordering on Slam at places during “The Mechalith” while being clear enough to hear lyrics as he rants and raves like a man possessed. A master of both the shrill and the guttural who at times is capable of giving the impression of multiple vocalists on each track, he’s that good. The rapid fire “Pleonexia” keeps up the flow of the EP with an abundance of those aforementioned incendiary bursts this time housed between Death Metal groove laden riffs that have that instant hook, space age ear worms of brutality that simply knows no gravity before the enhanced programming of “Drosera” gives everything an icy cold feel after its searing heat. “Mechalith” represents the perfect soundtrack to a videogame like Dead Space, played in the dead of night in pitch black surroundings, it’s only flaw being its duration because its over all to quickly… [8/10]
Track listing
- Ore & Fluid
- The Mechalith
- Pleonexia
- Drosera
“Mechalith” by Djinn-Ghül is out 9th December 2021 via Vicious Instinct Records with pre-orders available over at bandcamp