SZRON: "Death Camp Earth"

It's crazy to think that around two years ago I still thought that Polish black metal had already seen its most glorious days and nowadays the country yields only rather generic music, but oh how wrong was I. Whilst the first remark might still be true to a large extent – nothing quite beats what the various The Temple of Fullmoon bands did in the 90s – I constantly find myself lured to listen to Dark Fury (all albums now in my shelves), Ohtar (oh, true for that too) and other somewhat newer, mostly 21st century acts hailing from Poland. Szron is another example of these, and especially their 2010 album Zeal. Characteristic of the label Under the Sign of Garazel, I didn't see their newest album Death Camp Earth coming at all, I just suddenly came across it and saw it was released already in September. Information flow in the age of the internet isn't so flawless after all!

Death Camp Earth follows its predecessor in similar steps in that it consists of just a few tracks, though this is compensated by their lengths so that in total the album runs for a fitting 39 minutes. These four songs form this concise whole of uncompromising underground black metal which comprises both hateful tremolo riffing as well as a sense of sadness. Compared to earlier efforts, I think there's a bit more concentration on evoking a brooding, misty atmosphere instead of just kicking things dead with mere powerful rhythms. This means there's plenty of ominous and rather slow dwelling like the long interlude in the center of "Becoming a Shadow" consisting of nothing but a repetitive pattern of plucked, distorted guitars. "The Birth of a God" is all sullen too, seas of tremolo delivering utter hopelessness. "Summoning the Storm of Nothingness" picks up the pace a little and gives more space to ferocious riffing. The self-titled song, then again, concludes the album in a rather wistful mood.

The album is in almost every way the kind of black metal I always prefer, but it does have its minor glitches. The only proper problem I have with it is the production which suffocates the drums way too much into the background: where's the bass drum? The snare? Level them a bit closer to the massive walls of guitars, and you've got a winner right there. But now we kind of miss the power those sweet beats in e.g. "Summoning the Storm of Nothingness" would otherwise have. With this production in mind, I wouldn't say Death Camp Earth is as good as Zeal but this does come very close to it. Very much recommended anyhow if you're up for a feast on some tasteful black metal that doesn't play with unnecessary gimmicks.

3.5 / 5