Review: “Homo Homini Lupus” by Keres

You need to remove the shrink wrap to fully appreciate the cover artwork from guitarist Astahrot that adorns the second burnt offering from Italians Keres, it helps breathe life into the Wolf and shine a light on some very small details which otherwise go unnoticed. Formed in 2015 from the ashes of The Crying of Angels, the bands debut album “Heresy” surfaced a year later as a Death Metal album that caught the attention however the band disappeared from the face of the earth to wander the wilderness… until now. Recorded by the band themselves before being mixed and mastered by Stefano Morabito at 16th Cellar Studio (Fleshgod Apocalypse, Hour Of Penance, Hideous Divinity) sophomore album “Homo Homini Lupus” finds them moving into the Blackened realm with Gruesome Records…

…a new skin basher graces the drum stool in Federico Leone (Caedeous, Ever-Frost, Ultra-Violence) and keen to make his presence felt “Exist for War” has bursts of blasting between sinister edged muscular riffs to make for a powerhouse opening. Illuminating the horizon like a mushroom cloud from a nuclear reactor explosion, it’s an atmospheric and yet punchy affair that wipes the slate clean while at the same time dispelling any fears about what Keres would sound like after all this time. Put simply they’re older, wiser and more aggressive than ever before. An artillery shelling then serves to pave the way for the brutal vocals of “Immaculate Incarnation of Darkness” to tear you apart from the inside, the restless and relentless blasting not given a moments rest even when a face melting solo rips through the parade like a tornado in a dark alley. Another demonstration of the kind of demonic energy the band are capable of, when they are released from their cages into the live arena, there is going to be hell to pay in the form of mosh pit violence.

Despite being recorded by the band themselves there is nothing obviously DIY or DIE about the album, it sounds well polished with a phenomenal drum sound and attention paid to every single detail. Staccato riff breaks galore “Oblivion” is the kind of bludgeoning that threatens to knock you senseless with its punishment and yet feels cathartically satisfying. Vocally there are occasions when the lyrics disappear into the murk of the performance but that isn’t a bad thing, the brutal death grows do make way for some shriller moments that are easier to distinguish, “Pale Horse of Extinction” being a prime example. The solo and leads on this one are exceptional, a key part of the bands sounds that gives them a real edge.

Earworm riffs plough new furrows to the cerebral cortex with “Until Everything’s Burned” another powerhouse cut laced with depth and groove, the technical nature of the performance sublime and something which the band probably aren’t going to be given enough credit for. If August Burns Red made a Death Metal tune, it would sound like this the fierce vocal enough to put the fear of God into those faint of heart. Sinister and menacing the introduction to “Leviathan” feels like the opening credits of a psychological horror movie before the bloodshed begins with weighty riffs and bombastic bass, the rhythm section keeping the noose tight around the neck. A lull into a spoken word moment before the final third is the a real moment of class, the ability of the band to transition into and out from it in slick fashion testament to time spent in the rehearsal space.

A rampage through blackened riffs “Eradicate the Infected Seed” will test the strength of the concrete foundations of venues across the four corners of the globe when it is performed live. The jackhammer footwork and rumbling bass is enough to register as seismic activity during a vivacious first half of animalistic rage. Keeping the discerning listener on the edge of their seat a false ending of eerie melody rears its ugly head like a beast from the black lagoon before the second half onslaught returns to the lethal nature of the first. A ripper of dense atmosphere, it perhaps lacks a fretboard smouldering solo to bring it home but has all the intensity you could ever wish for. One more song is usually a call reserved for live shows but that is exactly what you want before “Void and Silence” hits. A purposeful slow burning start becomes a towering inferno of a funeral pyre with epic qualities as the vibrancy of the majestic guitars is matched in counter balance by thunderous drumming and larynx threatening vocals. A Blackened Death Metal masterclass, this is one that will leave you enthused by the genre once more, the adrenaline fuelled nature of this enough to replace an espresso or two [8.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Exist for War
2. Immaculate Incarnation of Darkness
3. Oblivion
4. Pale Horse of Extinction
5. Until Everything’s Burned
6. Leviathan
7. Eradicate the Infected Seed
8. Void and Silence

“Homo Homini Lupus” by Keres is out 23rd February 2024 via Gruesome Records with pre-orders available over at bandcamp