We oftentimes find ourselves before pieces of excellence with it all too often that bands are just shy of being able to bring it all together into a single cohesive form that delivers such magnitude on a grand scale that offers nothing but extremity. In no small way, that’s what makes up a large swathe of the death metal underground. Loads of talent and potential for anyone and everybody that’s able to make the cut in such a voracious environment, there’s always rewards to be had for those that well and truly go for the throat with bands on the rise all over the place to make their impact known. Doing more than just making their presence known, Chestcrush lives up to its name and them some with its latest effort.

Much like what we’re seeing in the many realms of doom metal, intensity is always something that has plenty of intrigue and substance to offer, but you need to know how to balance it with the other nuances of the sound lest you find yourself consumed and thus overwhelmed by a mess of a sound that is little more than unstructured noise. A little bit can go a long way in terms of melody, atmosphere, or theme with all of that more than capable of further amplifying the intense pressure that you’re carefully curating. Within their second effort of “ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ” (which translates apparently to “Soul Extractor”), Chestcrush manages to bring all of that a little bit more to the table thanks to some dabbling in adjacent styles for a little bit more personality, flavor, and complexity amongst an already dense beast of a creation. And make no mistake –  Chestcrush comes for your very soul with this horrific mass of sound and violence. It’s an absolute wall of menace that wouldn’t back down for the very ending of the world with the death metal at play here exceedingly aggressive in every notion without so much as a moment of reprieve for any who find themselves before this overwhelming meat grinder.

It’s a simple mission with an efficient delivery that leaves nothing to chance, yet there’s so much nuance and intricacy that belies “ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ”. It’s all there ripe for the taking, but one must proceed with immense caution. Chestcrush takes no prisoners and leaves naught but mangled bodies in their wake, yet those that are brave enough to uncover the secrets within this work of pure annihilation which offers dark splendor for those that can survive these harrowing trials.

LISTEN to “ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Chestcrush on Facebook here.

FOLLOW Chestcrush on Instagram here.