While there is truly no shortage of excellence to be had in ways of metal as you hop from one country to another, there’s always a chance than an unlikely realm can start throwing down some real intensity on a level that one cannot consider as anything less than unexpected. It’s only a matter of time before such a phenomenon comes about, and all you need to do it pay attention and realize what’s happening before the streak of greatness moves on elsewhere. Lately, the Turkish have been doing great things. Having made several right moves with plenty of bombastic acts in recent years, Türkiye has been spoiling the underground with plenty of class acts with the arrival of Shrine of Denial only continuing that very madness.

Despite how tired some instances of extreme metal can be, particularly when black and death metal come together in the wrong hands, there’s always more than enough room for a name to come around and not only show us what they can do, but what the sound can still be. In no small form and without a shred of compromise for the absolute entirety of the creation, the meticulous nature of “I, Moloch” is nothing short of a torrent of darkness and horror that’s should to have people running in droves once they realize the unyielding power we’re dealing with. Within what appears to be their first album, Shrine of Denial puts forth a display that already shows extreme promise on a scale that is just undeniable. Where many would take some understandable stumbles in the crafting of their first effort, it is throughout the whole of “I, Moloch” that we’re able to witness a band really grab the sound by the throat and bend it to their will. From the intrinsic rhythms that write brilliantly from sublime riffs to cascading notes that are nigh on intoxicating to become lost within alongside the overwhelming tapestry of darkness that Shrine of Denial understands in immense detail with all the finesse that one could ask for, “I, Moloch” is nothing less than eight captivating tracks that are sure to make you devoted to the band’s brand of bleak nothingness so that this macabre intoxicating never once fades.

This is the kind of splendor that black-death metal is always in need of. From its captivating songwriting to the unyielding intensity that exists in even the smallest moments of the album, “I, Moloch” embodies some of the finest aspects of the sound to a point that Shrine of Denial should be more than proud of what they’ve crafted here. Whatever is to come next, Shrine of Denial has put their best possible foot forward to ensure that they’re a name we must pay attention to lest we miss out on dark majesty unbound.

“I, Moloch” releases on March 7th via Transcending Obscurity Records!

LISTEN to advanced tracks from “I, Moloch” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Shrine of Denial on Facebook here.