From the onset of the album, the seismic heaviness alone is enough to unleash a maelstrom, while the music eliminates the use of melodies. The drumming on the four tracks is cohesive and consistent, and is immediately introduced in the opening track “Deathless”; the riffing takes a more complex method. “Gateway” significantly bears the musical phase of the band, while the tracks are in the vein of the previous albums; they are taken from the early periods of “Deprived” and “Bringer of Drought”.

The material is no longer overshadowed, but it also conveys the same essence of the musical composition that comes out sounding brutal and abrasive. The obscure quality of the albums finds its way to wield ruthless monstrosity in the next song, “Unbound”; the tonality narrows the chasm between bands like Ulcerate, Void Rot, and Phrenelith. Rather than sounding too modern and technical, the drumming focuses on tectonic double bass and the harsh corrosive riffing, shifting between sporadically blasting tempos.

The music relies less on atmospheric backdrop and texturing details; nevertheless, Phobocosm combines vicious growling with a desolate and dark atmosphere, adding to the bleak, slow pacing. And it seems that the band continues with the same scorching theme of the previous album, “Foreordained”.

The album also features three instrumental tracks: “Corridor I – The Affliction”, “Corridor II – The Descent”, and “Corridor III – The Void”. These tracks are composed of dark and bleak guitar work, conjuring an ambiguous feeling. “Sempiternal Penance” begins with straightforward blast beats. With its shifting tempo sounding overwhelming and fast, the vocal tone remains dense even in the middle of the turmoil; you are pulled into a deep sonic abyss.

Phobocosm delivers a potent form of death metal; their style renders a complex drumming arrangement that reaches its climax in almost every song. The unrelenting brutality is punctuated by the unsettling fury that the band accentuates on this album.

The cavernous guttural growls add another layer to the dense-filled riffs; the focus, however, isn’t on creating hooks. The instrumental cuts cement an eerie flair of the guitar department and enhance the atmosphere. “Beyond The Threshold of Flesh” is the longest track on the album, which exceeds the range of the usual tracks in the band’s catalog. The dark, ominous tone of the cavernous growls and the brutal riffing alone create a massive wall of sound, and this is precisely what Phobocosm brings on its latest material.

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