Review: “Inherited Methods of Cruelty” by Legacy of Torment

The winds of change are upon us and so cometh the hour, cometh three Kings, three horsemen of the apocalypse to deliver us to evil and inflict upon us torturous pain with plague, pestilence and famine hitherto unknown. Each musician is known for the scars upon his back with Australian bass player Sam Marino having served time in both Carthus and Roswell Deathsquad, Hungarian drummer and vocalist Benjie Quezada part of AccidentalIncest and formerly Texas Murder Crew alongside guitarist Varga Zsombor who cast no shadow in Maradandó Károsodás. Together they began their treacherous journey through the fields of fire in 2023 with Zsombor both mixing and mastering their debut EP “Inherited Methods of Cruelty“…

Taking a DIY or DIE approach can sometimes be a double edged sword, unintentionally adding rustic charm and removing polish however there is no such concern here as everything is exactly how you would expect to find it. A piece of art painted in Slamming Brutal Death Metal, “Inherited Methods of Cruelty” isn’t one for those faint of heart or weak of stomach, the introduction piece serving as a warning of the horrors that lie just beneath the surface. The evil truly begins with “Untold Atrocities“, a cut which takes a leaf from the book of Gutalax as down-tuned guitars swirl in familiar dirge laden patterns. Quezada’s vocals are of the kind that are indecipherable without a monocle and lyric sheet, his throat instead being used as another instrument of torture, inflicting levels of pain upon the discerning listeners cerebral cortex that are unmatched by any other implement. The grooves are tight and sinister, the kit work immaculate and by the time the bass drive that breathes life into “Lucid Decapitation” hits, you should be won over by the sense of fun at the heart of this. Low and slow passages spill into Downtempo Deathcore territory before chest bursting back to life with blasting intensity, the trio able to achieve the kind of rhythmic gymnastics others would kill for with an earworm riff and nasty sample giving this one legs.

Switching between neck snapping Death Groove riffs with slick transitions “Drowning in Vicious Bodily Fluids” is masterclass in how to make something that is essentially simple sound brutally brilliant, the downtempo passage in this one of the highest order. Evidence that things don’t have to be complex to be fun is exactly what this trio of musicians have created, their chemistry making these atrocities shine. Naturally the title track is the sharpest implement in the damp, dark torture chamber hell in which this was created and the way in which they drop the guitars out to let the bass rise to the surface on “Inherited Methods of Cruelty” is another masterstroke. Blood gargling vocals from Quezada will no doubt have his neighbours calling the paramedics but in fairness those wounds are sealed by the heat from the fires of his belly. One final moment of dysfunction rises from the abyss in “Infinite Suffering“, a cut which reaches Twitch Of The Death Nerve levels of depravity as a punishing pummelling you’re never going to forget. The samples are well chosen and perfectly executed, the jackhammer footwork the sound of forced trephination [7.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Intro
2. Untold Atrocities
3. Lucid Decapitation
4. Drowning in Vicious Bodily Fluids
5. Inherited Methods of Cruelty
6. Infinite Suffering

“Inherited Methods of Cruelty” by Legacy of Torment was released on 23rd February 2024 and is available over at bandcamp