It was only just earlier this year that the mysterious act of Ch’ahom barely poked its head out of the darkness with its partnership with Sentient Ruin Laboratories that produced a compilation of demos and an impressive one-track EP, “Ts’ono’ot”. It was the sort of piece that more than piqued my interest along with many others as it was the sort of death-black metal with a strong influence of Meso-American themes in a surprisingly complex form that we didn’t know we needed. The promise of a full-length on the horizon was a tantalizing one with all the possibilities that laid before us with the final result that is “Knots of Abhorrence” the kind of otherworldly magnificence that many of us were already bowing to before its whispers even made contact to our feeble minds.

Foreboding from the very beginning and something that always manages to tempt imagination from unlikely sources, Ch’ahom has been an entity of the underground that only a  luckyfew have been able to come across before this year with us new listeners being absolutely spoiled this year. “Ts’ono’ot” was already more than enough to whet the palette and get us interested in what the act is capable of, yet it’s with the five monstrous works that make up “Knots of Abhorrence” that the third release from Ch’ahom in 2023 stands as the act’s strongest by far. A strong dosage of that Meso-American theme that resonates surprisingly with the black-death metal appearance that Ch’ahom has honed into a particularly deadly sound, “Knots of Abhorrence” wastes no time in hurling the listener through the chasms of time back to when ritual sacrifice and worshipping of gods in temples that reach towards their domain with such violence, atmosphere, and off-putting psychedelics that you’re given whiplash of the most vicious variety quickly into what the record has to offer. Never once missing an opportunity to eviscerate the soul through supreme bursts of extreme metal that black out the very sun or through enchanting mysticism that is but leading you to the slaughter, Ch’ahom cements their unique magnificence with “Knots of Abhorrence”. Incredibly few other bands throughout the underground can ever hope to come close to what Ch’ahom has dared to cultivate over several demos to make this first proper step into the light a sonic offensive that many of us aren’t likely to forget any time soon.

Of all the creations that have crawled forth from the darkest depths of the underground in recent times, Ch’ahom is an act that is certifiably something all its own. Without question, Ch’ahom has been carving its own path through the chasms of both time and the unending underground to make for a spectacle the likes of which we’re rarely treated to on any level. “Knots of Abhorrence” is far from the first offensive that Ch’ahom has launched upon the unsuspecting, but it stands as easily the band’s most compelling creation to date by a large margin with the future looking immensely promising for Ch’ahom as the sun becomes eclipsed the moment they make their dominating presence known.

“Knots of Abhorrence” releases on November 3rd via Sentient Ruin Laboratories!

LISTEN to an advanced track from “Knots of Abhorrence” on Bandcamp here, or via YouTube below.

Ch’ahom does not have any sort of social media that I could find, so please follow Ch’ahom via their Bandcamp page here to stay up-to-date on the band’s activities.