Review: “Vermian Death” by Grave Hex

Formed in Helsinki in March 2024 by a trio of musicians known for their prior convictions in Vainoa, Loka and Radien who share a mutual love of bands like Autopsy, Undergang and Morbific, Finnish Death Punks Grave Hex are said to have written their debut album “Vermian Death” in complete spontaneity. Mastered by Greg Wilkinson (Abstracter, Necrot, Hyperdontia) at Earhammer Studios, given the pair of advanced singles, reputations and influences, we’re expecting something soaked in tension, rot and filth that is about as feral as it gets. In the promo pictures the band are a quartet with the addition of bassist Hanna however the album was completed as a trio with both Martti Rasa and Miikka Kinnunen on vocals and guitars alongside Matti Vainionpää on drums.

The sinister urge is felt deep within the cranium as “Steeping Master Worm Flesh” rises from the abyss. Subtle tempo changes are well placed during this fine example of old school Death Metal which borders on HM2 worship with its distorted guitar tones and oppressive atmospheres. Primitive but not in a neanderthal like way, the track muses on themes on horror and torture with death growls so low that they feel like they’re accompanied by a plague of locust. What separates it from the wolf pack is the fleeting soloing before the final demented chugs because this truly is the work of the dead, the dying and the damned. The sonic abrasions know no end as “Vultural Scourge” roars into life, the vocals much more prominent as chaotic blast beats and whammy bar enhanced riffs fly in all directions. It sounds volatile enough to make you think it wasn’t recorded to a click with some odd time signatures in the rhythmic battery but that doesn’t take away from the pure evil of it and it’s still abundantly listable. “Den Of Evil” rattles a the rusty cage with a fiercer vocal performance, the bass sounding like a third guitar as the outfit weaponize their instruments and declare war on you skull. There are moments that sound cavernous with Doom laden dirge fuelled riffages reverberating off the walls, the whammy bar action sounding like the cries of tortured souls in this dark majesty.

Low, slow and drenched in blood “Endless Impossible Constructs” scrapes the resin from the soul with its clanky bass tones and hellish vocals, the call from the void one that will leave you frozen in fear. Building the mountain the tempo shifts, creating the sense that something wicked this way comes, an extended solo of the tasteful variety a curious choice. There is no place for the virtuoso in the bowels of hell and the haunting final notes ring out as if to give the title track “Vermian Death” room the breathe. A powerful, stompy beast this one returns to the earlier offerings with hints of Black Sabbath like riffs fit for worship underneath the weighty distorted sounds. Disturbing vocal throat gratings let the story unfurl its wings, the lyric sheet and a magnifying glass the minimum requirement to comprehend exactly what’s happening. Not that any of that takes away from the tune because you can use your imagination as to what horrors lurk just beneath the surface and just out of reach.

Changing the angle of the sonic onslaught “Pungent Pulsating Pools Of Blood” plays out at the tempo of the damned, roaring like a beast impaled as it lurches from side to side, blood splattering up the walls. The lively nature of this one, complete with its earworm of a main riff, is what is going to keep you coming back to this record for more because hell has no fury like Grave Hex. Grand finale “Halls Beneath The Primal Mere” feels like more than one song unceremoniously stitched together, the first couple of minutes a slow crushing fog of suffocating atmosphere that lifts for a rampaging mid section of blast beats and guitar theatrics. Not quite returning to the anguish of the start but instead burning with intense white heat, this one is like being crushed under the weight of giants. The quality of the musicianship shines like gold glistening in the pale moon light and as a starting point this sets a pretty high standard… [7.5/10]

Track Listing

I. Steeping Master Worm Flesh
II. Vultural Scourge
III. Den Of Evil
IV. Endless Impossible Constructs
V. Vermian Death
VI. Pungent Pulsating Pools Of Blood
VII. Halls Beneath The Primal Mere

“Vermian Death” by Grave Hex is out 22nd August 2025 via Night Terrors Records (cassette) and Cavernous Records (compact disc).