Unspoken – Requiem Aeternam Deo (2013)

With a very dark and foul sound (we mean it in a good way), today we have Norway’s Unspoken and their upcoming full-length “Requiem Aeternam Deo”, soon to be released in 2013. Mixing elements of Death, old-school Black, and some Thrash Metal, this band delivers 10 tracks of neck-snapping Metal that any fan of old-school music that demands modern production values would love.

Opening with the bone-chilling “Baptized At The Altar of Rats”, the band’s fuzzy guitars are immediately present bringing havoc and destruction. The demonic vocals are very typical of old-school bands, and Unspoken really makes the shine with well-crafted music and an excellent production. Keeping the momentum going, the chugging riffs of “Redemption Scars” make this song quite catchy and perfect for some headbanging.

While most tracks circle around 3-4 minutes and are very traditional, songs like “Death of a Dynasty” and “The Culprit” keep going for over 7 minutes and have the band being a bit more melodic and slower paced. We particularly loved both of these tracks since they are allowed to develop at a slower pace creating a better atmosphere to accompany the hellish vocals. It is very interesting to hear how the band can go from a groovy DM track to more well-constructed songs that take a bit to buildup and deliver very solid melodic passages.

The atmospheric side of the band is another one of Unspoken’s strengths, and on songs like “Void of Eden Part I”, they really create a supernatural vibe that enshrouds the listener very effectively.  Closing this release with the very crushing “Oppression Pawns and Poisonous Tongues”, this is in fact our favorite track of this release thanks to the very oppressive riffing.

With ten years of existence under their belts, Unspoken have figured out how to craft crushing songs that are super appealing to the listener. The band’s riffing abilities are excellent and the way they piece their longer songs together is brilliant. Their shorter songs are a bit above average, and if they only focused on more song that can grow over time, Unspoken would be a total force to be reckoned with. If you like devastatingly chilling old-school Metal with a crystal clear production, be sure to pre-order this excellent release.

Release: 2013

Genre: Black/Death Metal

Country: Norway