It ought to go without saying that the underground is a place where all sorts of talent can remain hidden for years. As time goes on and these bands continue to toil away, there are always those that manage to defy expectations and rise above the competition to show us what they’re made of with some of the finest eclipsing our wildest imagination of what they can achieve. Embodying the finest concepts of such exceptional talent, Ch’ahom’s rise has been meteoric in just the last few years with their unique blend of black-death metal something that has rightfully caused quite a stir. If it was their first full-length album two years ago that caught people off-guard, then it’s with their second that everyone should rightfully be blown away.
To know even a little bit about what Ch’ahom brings to the table is to realize why this band stands apart from a vast swathe of this corner of the underground. Doing far more than merely finding a middle ground where black and death metal can intersect, it’s with their haunting atmospheres born of pre-Hispanic cultural inspiration that Ch’ahom achieves a sound that cannot easily be likened to any other band across the vast expanse of the underground, and they’ve accomplished much with such a devilish concoction. With several demos under their belt and a rising presence in just the last three years, “Anthropic Rites of Sublimation” stands as Ch’ahom’s indisputable crowning achievement thus far. Every given aspect about this record takes into account the best elements of what has made Ch’ahom the beast it is while continuously showing us the prowess and terror that this band commands with absolute mastery and impunity. The soundtrack of a civilization hellbent on self-destruction through the most blasphemous rituals necessary in order to achieve such magnificent obliteration, the entirety of “Anthropic Rites of Sublimation” may not seem like a lot given it doesn’t even clock in over thirty minutes, but do not let that fool you! Ch’ahom packs a lot into these five overwhelming tracks such that you have no choice to become utterly engrossed by what’s undoubtedly one of the most spectacular performances that 2026 will see in ways of extreme metal of any kind.
Ch’ahom was already on an undeniable rise with their previous offerings, yet it is here that they’ve outdone themselves in such a way that is downright flabbergasting from beginning to end. Where many other bands would take a somewhat more conventional path, it’s through doubling down on their most unique tendencies that Ch’ahom enables “Anthropic Rites of Sublimation” to become far more than another entry in the vast underground. Rather, the record becomes an irresistible beast of supreme proportions.
LISTEN to “Anthropic Rites of Sublimation” on Bandcamp here.
FOLLOW Ch’ahom on Instagram here.
https://youtu.be/XYWvu_O5_7I?list=RDXYWvu_O5_7I