18th January 2023

Review: “Conscripted Morality” by Penny Coffin

Recorded and mixed by Penny Coffin in various times, places and capacities in tormented confinement – the 37th chamber of death – before being mastered by James Plotkin (Dead Skeletons, Necro Deathmort, Conan), “Conscripted Morality” marks on the grave the third EP from Scottish and Greek four piece Death Metal act Penny Coffin. As they have arisen from the grave comparisons with spitting, snarling one man Black Metal project that is Snorlax as well as Twitch of the Death Nerve have faded as Daniel Paton (6 strings and torment), Garry Ross (Bass and determination), Joseph Edward Kelly (Guitars and strangulation) and Panagiotis Rodopoulos (Drums) have found their own style and now alchemy is afoot…

Cloaked in robes soaked in blood, the ethereal chanting of an ancient ritual sets a dark tone before the hammer falls on the skull of the human sacrifice, kicking and screaming at the alter in the dark of night. Those who have suffered the plague and pestilence have gone feral and must be released to the Wrathful Gods for punishment for their crimes in a hope that what remains of humanity can survive and so the Death Metal onslaught of “Ballistic” begins raging atmospherics that burn as they touch the flesh. The percussive artillery shelling from Rodopoulos is nothing short of a blitzkrieg before Joseph Edward Kelly burns Blackened Death Metal into something with an ocean of Death Groove for the final third, building with the addition of darkly melancholic leads. The growth in Penny Coffin as they play together is plain to see, with each subsequent record they have refined and redefined their sound in the forges at the heart of Valhalla, their blades now cutting like a hot knife though butter. The swirling, brooding and sinister “Predator” is as vicious as they come, soaked in Groove laden Death Metal that should see them ascend the shades of night to Maryland Death Fest in the US, such is the power and strength to dominate that the quartet possess. It is as if they have been injected with the blood of Glen Benton as “Slowdive” hits, a cut which is anything but slow as it pulverises the brains thanks to the rampaging rhythm section while an ethereal mid section adding a haunting touch. The second half however is pure decimation of the weak, a circle pit starter that creates a tornado and opens a portal to another dimension as the demonic vocals call from the void. It’s savage but in an intelligently calculated and malicious way so the heads don’t just bang, they roll as if severed by a guillotine so like a fine wine, Penny Coffin have matured to give us something of real verve and swagger. The final cut is the deepest as it approaches eight minutes and with “Conscripted Morality” they create a magnum opus of a tune to help you breathe more easily. Vocally sparse it has been formulated to have an almost hypnotic quality as it rages like the four winds at the height of a storm, building the mountain with driving riffs that feel like rain lashing down as the percussive thunder roars in the distance. Then there is calm as the ancient ritual begins once more… Penny Coffin, with these Ferrero Rocher you’re really spoiling us! [8.5/10]

Track Listing