In the sprawling hellscapes that death metal often inhabits with there being rarely any spot that isn’t densely populated for one reason or another, it is where the style crosses boundaries with the realm of thrash that I find myself having the least amount of experience. My bar for the sound has been incredibly high for years since any band could just be loud and angry, but it takes something more to create a compelling work of the style that checks off all the right boxes. When it comes to their upcoming album, Dark Zodiak more than qualifies for all of them by fucking miles!

The fusion of death and thrash metal has been a union that many of us are more than familiar with, but I cannot help but feel that recent iterations of the style have not often been up to snuff for what the potential of the sound has always been regarded as for years amongst listeners. Whether it’s due to a few truly genius acts coming around or just the simple fact that they’re being lost in the ocean of other names that make up all the other adjacent styles I’ve no idea, but there is no excuse that you can tell me that’s a good enough reason to ignore what Dark Zodiak has put forward on their upcoming album, “Ophiuchus”. There is so much power and fire within the content of these ten ferocious tracks, and I’d be shocked to find any fan of this style being able to resist the excellence that is constantly put forth for the absolute entirety of this record. Riffs are overflowing out of every minute of this song, the vocals keep you rooted in place as they work magnificently with the unrelenting power of the strings, and the rhythms put forth by all of the instruments make for an utterly gripping work that all culminates to allow “Ophiuchus” to not only smack you right across the fucking face with unbelievable power but it sends you right down into the very fires of the Earth just to show you what this act is truly capable of. Right from the very beginning, Dark Zodiak proves themselves to be more than capable at bringing forth a fantastic glory of death/thrash the likes of which we truly need more of, and it’ll be a damn shame if this effort goes unnoticed for its raw talent and excellence is something that does not deserve to go unnoticed.

Of all the styles that death metal covers, it is the area where it crosses over with thrash that I feel is the most in need of talent with all the potential that such a simple concept has not been done nearly enough justice often enough, and if Dark Zodiak is just the start of a new wave of brilliance for the style then I’m more than happy to jump on board that train of utter speed and fire! Everything about “Ophiuchus” is what many of us have been salivating for, and I cannot stress enough that the content that is to be found within this marvelous work is the exact sort of power that we need more of in our veins.

“Ophiuchus” releases on January 30th!

LISTEN to Dark Zodiak on Bandcamp here.

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