Article by: Leanne Ridgeway
French death metal act SKELETHAL is set to release their hotly anticipated, sophomore album, entitled ‘Unveiling The Threshold,‘ on November 20th, via Hells Headbangers.
Eight years since the band’s inception, with a line-up change, the impressively brutal first full-length in 2017, ‘Of The Depths…‘, various splits and demos to date, SKELETHAL (who feature members of Schizophrenia, Mortal Scepter, and ex-Infinite Translation) return to the scene stronger than ever. ‘Unveiling The Threshold‘ strikes back with not only classic death metal, but its Swedish late 80’s / early 90’s counterpart, when the subgenre was still in its infancy yet still did reek of that unmistakable stench, away from modern trickery and trends.
SKELETHAL’s forthcoming album succeeds in both staying true to the sound’s historical roots, with its raw blend you could also easily find yourself in an unreleased Hetsheads or Carnage demo – while going beyond the simple and now too-limited SweDeath tag. ‘Unveiling The Threshold‘ grabs you by the throat before circling its listener like a vulture. The band may still tread on the left hand path, but besides resurrecting a certain idea of the underground – some may say ‘true’ – that seemingly disappeared back in 1991, it’s actually how genuinely evil and undiluted their death metal is that’s most striking about ‘Unveiling The Threshold‘.
To keep it raw, authentic and high-voltage, SKELETHAL recorded the eight fast-paced tracks by themselves in their rehearsal room in Tourcoing nearby Lille in France, before handing the result over to Greg Wilkinson from the now infamous Earhammer Studios (Necrot, Undergang, etc.) for the mix last June. The band comments:
“We are very thrilled to present our second full length ‘Unveiling the Threshold’ which holds the most brutal and into-your-face material composed by Skelethal to this day.
“On this second album we were able to develop our death metal in a more efficient way, incorporating a second soloist, faster relentless drums and allowing the songs to reach the ferocious grounds of early grindcore while still in the realm of Swedish death metal. Overall, the song writing process has been more personal and included a greater number of influences.
Actual OSDM thrives worldwide with a very unique sound behind which we can often find Greg Wilkinson from Earhammer Studios (Undergang, Necrot, Mortuous…). This is the reason why we wanted Skelethal to collaborate with him for the mixing and mastering of the album. This, in addition to a new recording process and a still fresh line-up, enabled us to achieve the heaviest sound we ever had: deep vocals, chainsaw-buzzing guitarzz, a crushing bass and an explosive snaredrum. The production might be cleaner than our previous releases, but still has its important share of filth and aggressiveness that defines Death Metal to its core.
Finally, we asked the talented Eliran Kantor to bring ‘Unveiling the Threshold’ to life throughout his very singular and remarkable painting. The final result fits perfectly the identity of the band and the album, where monoliths rise from the sea and portals open up to a tormented sky.”
Tracklist:
01. Sidereal Lifespan
02. Antropomorphia
03. Emerging from the Ethereal Threshold
04. Repulsive Recollections
05. Cave Dwellers
06. On Somber Soil
07. Adorned with the Black Vertebra
08. Abyssal Church… The Portal Revealed
The four-piece has just unleashed a second single, the raw death metal magnum opus “Repulsive Recollections.” Watch the blistering band performance in the video streaming below and have a listen to the first single “Sidereal Lifespan” via an audio stream.
‘Unveiling The Threshold‘ is slated for a release on November 20th, 2020, with Hells Headbangers and will be available as vinyl LP, Cassette, CD, as well as digital formats. The album pre-sale has started at the following locations:
EU: Skelethal Webstore or Bandcamp
USA: Hells Headbangers Bandcamp
SKELETHAL:
Guillaume Zeller – Guitars / Vocals
Lucas Scellier – Guitars
Julien Bouly – Bass
Lorenzo Vissol – Drums
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