Review: “Advent Of Wounds” by Fossilization

“Advent of Wounds” began taking shape right after our tour with Father Befouled in late 2024. I knew I’d have to rethink my approach to songwriting, especially after years of writing with Paulo’s drumming style in mind. Life took us in different directions, so I opened myself up to new ideas and let that guide the creation of these tracks. From the start, my goal was to make an album even more brutal than Leprous Daylight, from sheer death metal brutality to the miserable melancholy of the doom-laden spirit of early Anathema, Paradise Lost, and early Katatonia. You can also hear many of black metal influences across the record, the opening riff of ‘Disentombed and Reassembled by the Ages’ is a direct nod to one of my all-time favorite bands, Antaeus. This time, I also wanted a new direction in the mix and master, so we worked with Gabriele Gramaglia (Cosmic Putrefaction, Turris Eburnea, Vertebra Atlantis). We also had Justin Stubbs (Father Befouled, Encoffination) appear on “Scalded by His Sacred Halo.” And, for the first time, the artwork features a painting instead of an illustration, created by the incredible Guang Yang.” ~ V.

It is written upon the ancient scrolls that a pair of members of Sludge Death Doom collective Jupiterian started a new project in Fossilization in 2020 in order to free their minds of the all consuming thoughts of horror, death and eternal suffering. From their home in São Paulo Brazil the duo created bleak, crushing and claustrophobic works of blackened chaos with their debut EP “He Whose Name Was Long Forgotten” emerging a year later. Inspired by the reception of their work the pair completed a split with Ritual Necromancy before a debut album in “Leprous Daylight” offered frantic and inexorable rhythms that hammer the skull and drive the discerning listener to the depths of despair. that was two years ago and now original vocalist, guitarist and bassist V (Jupiterian, ex-Inerthe, ex-The Black Coffins) is joined by new drummer Z (Blackning, ex-Chaos Inc) for yet more brutality…

…and that begins with the malevolent darkness that is “Cremation of a Seraph“, the bloodthirsty beast from the black depths rampaging through the village in search of its prey and destroying everything in its path in the process. Blast beats hammer the skull relentlessly as blackened riffs rain like fire from the skies above, the death growled vocals a summoning to an occult ritual from beyond the grave. The tempo and texture shifts within the framework of this opening composition are potent and powerful, the slower more stompy parts making the faster and heavier ones hurt that much more. One good turn deserves another so “Disentombed and Reassembled by the Ages” roars into life like a shovel headed killing machine, the fierce vocal tirade burning the ear canals with fire and brimstone. Tremolo picked moments make way for slower, Doom laden dirges, the mid section a slow crawl through the trenches of oblivion before the double kick drums and clanky bass begin to grind once more. The dark, sinister and menacing atmosphere is wonderful malevolent, the duo clearly masters of art even before Justin Stubbs of Father Befouled and Encoffination joins them for a guest vocal appearance on the almighty “Scalded by his Sacred Halo“. A brutal assault on the senses in every sense of those words, the band make great use of long, drawn out riff patterns that borrow from the world of Sludge Metal to bolster their artillery between vicious attacks of jackhammer footwork and demonic vocals.

The blackened introduction to “Terrestrial Mold” finds Fossilization pushing into Extreme Metal territories as they salt the earth, a haunting melody rising from beyond the grave to accompany the restless and relentless whirlwind of percussive battery. That then fades in the mid-section with a grotesque Doom laden passage before the psychopath’s knife rises once more. It’s clear that the pair of assailants have spent a great deal of time crafting something to match their vision of a bleak world and with each repeated listen fresh nuance is there to be found. The war drums sound a march as “Servo” begins, the whammy bar moments that follow adding a touch of class to the incendiary madness, the final moments sounding like some kind of occult ritual or mushroom induced mind trip. That makes way for the pomp and circumstance of “While the Light Lasts“, a tub thumping tune to help you breathe more easily which has a savage step up into the kind of off kilter riffs with which Meshuggah made their name. It’s may only be a fleeting passage but it is a brilliant one which allows the devastation that follows plenty of time to breathe and if Crowbar played Death Metal then that’s how this gloriously powerful story ends. There is an interesting and somewhat unexpected scream-a-long ability to the vicious little ditty that is “Temple of Flies and Moss“, the abrasive riffs and bludgeoning kit work making it arguably one of the more demanding pieces to play in this box full of sharp objects. What makes it is the final moment however, feedback leaving you looking vacantly into the middle distance and wondering if death really is simply the beginning… [7.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Cremation of a Seraph
2. Disentombed and Reassembled by the Ages
3. Scalded by his Sacred Halo (ft. Justin Stubbs of Father Befouled, Encoffination)
4. Terrestrial Mold
5. Servo
6. While the Light Lasts
7. Temple of Flies and Moss

“Advent Of Wounds” by Fossilization is out 13th February 2026 via Everlasting Spew Records and is available over at bandcamp