Review: “Deathsent Ceremony” by Beatrix

“The release of this EP has been a rocky road. First we had a falling out with our original drummer right before we were about to head into the studio, after that we had to find a new drummer and teach him the new songs. Once the songs were recorded we had some delays with the artworks. Now after almost two years it’s finally being released. For these reasons we’ve already been playing these songs live. There are 3 new songs and Torment of the Soul from the demo which now has solos and the vocals have been recorded properly since I rushed them on the demo a little bit, but you know it’s raw and the new recordings haven’t forgotten this essence. I hope the process with our upcoming full length album will be a lot smoother without too many delays. Anyway, the Deathsent Ceremony EP is adulterated Beatrix madness of pure fucking filth! See you at the gigs!” ~ vocalist Markus ‘Suffy’ Leppänen

Formed in 2019 in Tampere, Finland and fuelled by themes of Dark fantasy, Cosmic horror, Occultism and Anti-religious rhetoric, Beatrix are Blackened Thrash five piece with influences from the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal. After a pair of demos either side of a split EP with Abigail put their praying mantis worshiping antics on the map, they entered Black Floyd’s Analog Studio with Tapio Lepistö (Swallowed, Dome Runner, Unearthly Rites) who recorded, mixed and mastered their debut EP “Deathsent Ceremony“. The question is, just how many of their crimes do they wish to confess to? Whether it was recorded live on the floor or not remains a mystery but there is a certain bloodthirsty, raw and urgent feel to these songs that suggests they were. That is particularly evident in the drum sound because Matias Rinnetie frantically and frenetically beats the living daylights out of the kit, it feels like there is a single microphone on it. Not that that is necessarily a bad thing, it gives the record old school Black Metal appeal and a certain nostalgic charm.

The title track comes to life with a haunting solo that sounds like it has has King Diamond influences to it before swiftly entering breakneck speed riff territory as the band play everything as fast as humanly possible. Fortunately the train doesn’t get derailed but there are a couple of warts and all moments that are mightily close as the chaotic bedlam reaches its epic crescendo. After that lethal dose of Finnish venom, “Hatefed” flies into the ear canals like a bat out of hell. There is a certain Punk quality to the vocal performance from Markus ‘Suffy’ Leppänen as he barks and bites his way through the lyrical narrative while the guitar work continues to astound. A brightness to the leads is a nice touch and while some might call for them to slow down a notch, the raw energy of the five piece is a huge part of their appeal.

The war drums pound as the 1980’s Thrash sounds of “Torment Of The Soul” appear on the horizon, a gradual descent into something more akin to recent offerings by Sadistic Force almost inevitable. Slower and more atmospheric this one burns and bleeds, the call from the black depths too strong to ignore. A powerful statement piece of tune, if it was a little more polished it could actually reach the heights of “In My Darkest Hour” by Megadeth; the band have that ability it their arsenal should they choose to use it. Spitting and snarling from the very outset, Markus ‘Suffy’ Leppänen severs heads with his vocal performance as “Zeraphine” puts the pedal to the metal. A tasteful gang chant moment and a few bass bleed outs from Sakari ‘Röppä’ Juurijoki make this one hit that much harder as a real celebration of what this band are about. Old school and devilishly raw, this ain’t one for the faint of heart or weak of mind [7.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Deathsent Ceremony
2. Hatefed
3. Torment Of The Soul
4. Zeraphine

“Deathsent Ceremony” by Beatrix is out 1st January 2025 via Inverse Records and is available over at bandcamp