Artist: Malhkebre
Title: Prostration
Type: EP
Label: Ahdistuksen Aihio Productions

A timely reissue as this hard to pronounce band are going to be heading out on a few dates soon with Christicide on the Saturn’s Wrath tour. This is four tracks of ritualistic and overtly satanic French black metal and only really aimed at those who tread the paths of darkness. The group have only released a split with Aosoth with one track by each band since the 525 limited CD release of this came out originally in 2006, so I think it is fair to say, prolific they are not.

Starting with ‘Nothingness Way’ we are assaulted by a horrible Lovecraftian sounding beast rising from the depths, croaking foully from the darkness as it gets closer ready to bite and devour souls. A musical quagmire tears in with guitars cutting out a chaotic scythe but it is the vocals of Eklezjas'Tik Berzerk which are impossible to ignore as they gibber away like a man possessed making absolutely no sense whatever language they are vomited out in. Not sure how they are meant to be taken but they are so over the top it’s rather difficult especially as deep down you know that this is as far as the band are concerned serious necromancy being cast. ‘Première Louange’ follows without break and then slows into gravid, sluggish motion with the over the top croaks gargling away like a mouthwash advert. Don’t go into this expecting keyboards or anything like that, there is melody that can be picked out amongst the rampant chaotic flow but it’s not pleasant, rather it seems designed to simply cut you down like a hail of bullets. Low rumbling and spell-craft usher in ‘Obscurus Religiosus’ and I am reminded a fair bit of the over the top display from Ofermod at this years Party San.

At only 22 minutes this does make me want to hear more but that is very unlikely as apart from that track on the split there seems to be nothing else recorded, even the previous demo was half this release. So a bit of an obscurity all round then, even if it is an interesting one, guess those live shows could be equally short.

http://www.malhkebre.org
http://www.myspace.com/malhkebre