Review: “A Sense of Injury” by Tongues of Mercury

Hailing from Gqeberha in South Africa, Tongues of Mercury is a fresh project from multi instrumentalist Shaun Mitchell (Dead Man Risen, Soul’s Darkness, Dreams of Nightmares) and vocalist Jaime Ribeiro (Semyazah, Priest Killer, Abattoir of Shrikes). Promising lyrical themes rooted largely in philosophical schools of thought with Stoicism being among the most prevalent, their aim is simple: to achieve self expression in the heaviest way possible.

What’s clear from the outset with this first piece of work from Tongues of Mercury is that they aren’t afraid to cross any borders or boundaries, often preferring to jump the razor wire topped fence than seek a gate that might be guarded by security. The pair demonstrate their prowess with powerful opening cut “A Crimson Lack of Absolutes“, a track that sonically leans on Death Groove but has moments of Melodic Death in the lead guitars. Ribeiro’s throat shredding vocal performance is arguably the single heaviest element, his death growls only breaking for a spoken word in the final third. Both men are seasoned veterans of many campaigns and have earned their scars, meaning the track isn’t some raw first stab in the dark recorded in a basement dwelling but a polished, well rounded affair that very much sounds like they’re establishing what this project is going to be rather than experimenting.

Title track “A Sense of Injury” then finds Ribeiro screaming at the sky with clenched fists, refusing to be broken by this enemies despite the pain. Buried samples from a war zone underpin the vocals in the mid section with gun fire and shouting squashed by the crushing guitars and thunderous percussion. Unlike a lot of two man projects, the drums don’t sound programmed with a lack of obvious flat cymbal hits that are usually a dead give away. Instead the music simply flows as if this is a full band, ready to take on any live show offerings that might come their way.

Double checking the lyric sheet confirms that quotes from Anita Avramides, Prof. Raymond Tallis and David Foster Wallace are contained with the lyrics of “The Solipsist“, a cut which continues the record with lyrics that make you think long after the music has faded into the background. Another rhythmically pummelling tune to help you breathe more easily, it has very little fat that could be trimmed, focussing on crushing, weighty atmospherics rather than embellishments or virtuoso moments. Its easy to see where the band could incorporate synths or orchestration if they so desired moving forward, such is the nature of this beast but not that its necessarily needed. “Henosis” completes the collection if fierce fashion with more brutal roars from Ribeiro and muscular riffage from Mitchell, the pair having found their formula and established it with the force of a kerb stomp [7.5/10]

Track Listing

“A Sense of Injury” by Tongues of Mercury is out 31s July 2025 and is available over at bandcamp.