Review: “Semitae Mentis” by Spiritual Deception

Sharing a deep connection with philosophy and owing their name to a theory from the Danish philosopher Søren Aabye Kierkegaard, Italian Symphonic Blackened Technical Death Metal purveyors Spiritual Deception have long been a band as thought provoking as they are heavy. Since their inception in 2016 they have offered lyric sheets for contemplation long after the neck snapping is over with an unholy trinity of EPs of which the final chapter in 2021’s “Oxymoron” is their finest moment. Three years on it is finally time for them to offer up a full length debut album with a settled line up around mastermind, vocalist, guitarist and orchestrator in Cheif Mirko Frontini. Mixed and mastered by Stefano Morabito (Hideous Divinity, Twitch Of The Death Nerve, Fleshgod Apocalypse) at 16th Cellar Studio in Rome Italy and featuring an intriguing pair of guest appearances that record is one called “Semitae Mentis“…

…Anyone who has listened to any of the prior works of Spiritual Deception will know about the kind of epic grandeur that they are capable of conjuring… but 45 seconds of macabre piano and atmospheric strings can not prepare you for the demonic wrath of Frontini’s brutal vocal or the brutal staccato riffs in the second half of opening cut “The I Swells“. When they strike, they strike hard and fast with a unexpected bombastic jolt that hits like a sucker punch with the feel and impact of “The Great Stone War” era Winds Of Plague but so much more technicality. The sweeping solo on this 137 opening gambit is majestic as it follows that punishing moment, the whole piece grabbing the attention with shock and awe. That means that “Atavic Future” can dispose of the need for a lengthy introduction and instead bring in vocals after less than a second, the rumbling bass from Billy Repalam enough to register as seismic activity. Manuel Del Giudice gets imaginative with some incredible drum fills, the double bass pummelling restricted to bursts in tasteful fashion. A brutal roar from the increasingly fearsome Frontini ushers in “The Days of Sleep“, a cut with ethereal orchestrations reminiscent of the Quasi-Dead’s examination chamber in The Chronicles Of Riddick. Heavy palm muted guitars form the foundation upon which slick leads, moments of tapping and a solo are built, the dark energy and power of this one confirming what we already knew. Resistance is futile.

Ice cold keys send a shiver down the spine as they add an eerie touch to the absolute battering ram that is “Beyond Perception and Matter“, the thunderous percussive battery sounding huge as a backdrop to the demonic vocals. They’re just about clean enough for the discerning listener to be able to comprehend the lyrical narrative which is exactly what you want from an album that surveys monsters in dark realms like this one. Luc Lemay of Gorguts joins the four piece for “Dirac Sea“, a cut which takes a leaf from the book of Extreme Metal with a couple of moments that smell like Aborted. A spoken word at the start is enough to throw you off the scent but as it builds through moments that threaten to tear you limb from limb to a scorcher of an extended technical solo, the fiery heat that they create here is an energy that can’t be contained. Breaking out the classical acoustic guitars is the last thing one might expect but the orchestrated macabre slow dance of instrumental interlude “The Night Opens” remains something soul stirring. A mid album palate cleanser that offers a moment of reflection, contemplation and clarity before the band charge head long into the second half of the record, it may sound like a train wreck on paper but in reality it works very well. It does so because it allows “On the Edge of the Abyss” to burst out of the hellscape like the Alien from the infamous scene with John Hurt. A vicious little ripper with sinister and menacing qualities that finds Frontini reaching gravelly new lows, this one feels like a serial killers confession to a demon at the gates of hell itself.

If you thought that Spiritual Deception might tone things down as they welcome Karl Sanders of Nile for “Thousand Lives Within” then this will feel like a lightening bolt from a wrathful God when it burns the ear canals. Embellished by a couple of moments of ethnic instrumentation and a classical solo, this brute of a cut stands out from the crowd of Zombies seeking blood because its actually less technical. Instead it packs that Death Metal punch pure and simple while being just as lethally affective. Dancing with the Devil on hot coals “Individuality Dissolves” then returns to type, a fleeting spoken word in the centre offering a counterpoint to a banshee’s wail that builds into a sublime technical solo. The helter skelter riffs are followed by a piano solo finale which would be a fitting conclusion to this horror movie of an album… except that there is one last trick in the book. That is “To the Coldest Decline“, a nine minute surpassing magnum opus that grabs you by the throat like a boa constrictor and doesn’t let go. Breakneck riffs fly in all directions as they cut against a nightmarish backdrop of piano and orchestration, a false ending after three minutes a moment that leads into a downtempo circling of the Universes drain. Shafts of light burst through the dark clouds overhead as a jaw dropping virtuoso solo rises to the surface only to be followed by a second of more Progressive Metal roots. The plunge into Deathcore wasn’t on the forecast but feels savage after that second solo, the piano finale as suitably fitting as you could ever want. An album that covers a lot of ground, this tornado of souls is one that is capable of destroying the World as we know it… [8.5/10]

Track Listing

1. The I Swells… (Decadence pt.I)
2. Atavic Future (Decadence pt.II)
3. The Days of Sleep (Decadence pt.III)
4. Beyond Perception and Matter
5. Dirac Sea (ft. Luc Lemay of Gorguts)
6. The Night Opens
7. On the Edge of the Abyss
8. Thousand Lives Within (ft. Karl Sanders of Nile)
9. Individuality Dissolves
10. …To the Coldest Decline (Decadence pt.IV)

“Semitae Mentis” by Spiritual Deception is out 9th February 2024 via Earache Digital and Amputated Vein Records and is available for pre-order over at bandcamp.