It has long been a privilege of mine to witness the rise of many names over the years that I have done these reviews. I find it endlessly fascinating to watch in real-time how bands cannot just grow upon their sound but potentially evolve it so that it becomes something that can’t quite be compared to much else that’s out there in the sprawling underground. Of all the acts that have accomplished greatness for small beginnings that make up the long list of such cases in my experience, Warcrab is definitely one that I find one of the most intriguing. Their brand of death metal with sludge is something that has never once been worthy of underestimation, but the reality of their fourth full-length album brings true darkness upon our world that I somehow did not see coming.

Just from their last album, Warcrab has come a long way. Vicious in all the right areas and never afraid to expand their sonic territory so their arsenal of supreme darkness never dulls or runs dry, Warcrab has achieved a vast amount of hard-fought glory, numerous bloodied trophies, and vast stretches of scorched earth in their wake since their first piece eleven years ago. However, if “Damned in Endless Night” saw Warcrab really come into their own, “The Howling Silence” is the quintet becoming absolute, undisputed masters of earthquaking ferocity.

Every creation from Warcrab has been mutated by the very power of the darkest night with the heaviness coming from a different dimension altogether, and it’s always impressive to watch the band pull everything off with staggering effectiveness. From the get-go, “The Howling Silence” sets itself up to somehow be Warcrab’s most potent and unforgiving performance to date. Not just building upon everything that we’ve seen from the band in albums past and evolving them to become exceptionally deadly at practically every turn, this is a record that forgives none, leaves no survivors, and always ensures that the ground is beyond soaked in the blood of the sad souls caught in the melee. While still a sharpened sound that can be likened to that of a highly tempered blade, the bludgeoning power of “The Howling Silence” is not to be underestimated for if the riffs and eclectic nature of the album aren’t what pull you in then it’s the apocalyptic-level intensity that will keep you in place once you realize it cracks the sky itself.

From the hypnotic riffage that pulls you further into the abyss to the slow dirges of immense pressure upon the soul to the title track showing us a terrific side that Warcrab has never truly let loose like how it has, “The Howling Silence” stands as a grand work of bone and madness that is destined to become what many will refer to as when 2023 gave us the best it has to offer. Warcrab has accomplished so much in their time with “The Howling Silence” certifiable their most compelling, complete, and punishing album to date by far. Whatever is to come next from the likes of Warcrab, “The Howling Silence” will cast a wide shadow over it and everything else that is to follow.

“The Howling Silence” releases on November 3rd via Transcending Obscurity Records!

LISTEN to advanced tracks from “The Howling Silence” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Warcrab on Facebook here.