Desecresy may not be as well known as some of the other Finnish death metal bands out there, but there’s something to be said for the consistency and pace that sole member Tommi Grönqvist has maintained over the past sixteen years. Originally founded following the break-up of Slugathor, Grönqvist was joined by bandmate Jarno Nurmi on vocals for Desecresy’s first four albums before taking over all aspects of the production on 2017’s The Mortal Horizon. The band has released five additional albums since then, with the latest being The Secret of Death, and while the core approach of mid-tempo and slower, cavernous death metal hasn’t changed since the beginning there are subtle shifts from album to album that make them distinguishable. The Secret of Death is no exception, as it marks a return to the overly murky and cavernous production alongside some expansion of the spacey and almost psychedelic atmosphere that was hinted at previously.
It’s important to note that Grönqvist’s approach is founded on the use of repetition and methodical build-ups, which taps into a very specific sub-set of the death metal audience. Comparisons can be made to fellow Finnish acts like Rippikoulu and Abhorrence or even Incantation, but over the years Desecresy has really created its own tone that bridges the moodier and atmospheric side of death and death/doom with classic bludgeoning. I wouldn’t necessarily call any of the group’s albums “clean” production wise, but The Secret of Death does feel noticeably murkier and cavernous compared to the last two and it feels like a shift back towards the approach taken on 2019’s Towards Nebulae. If you’re new to the band, opener “Gorge of the Dead” gives a pretty good idea of what to expect from the album and Desecresy overall, as it has a short, ominous intro that transitions over to very dense and weighty mid-tempo grooves. You do get some shifts over to faster blasting, but these are often concentrated bursts that ultimately lead back to the grooves, and its this layered emphasis on repetition and methodical build-ups that drives the songs forward. When everything comes together on tracks like “Crypthymn”, “Ancient Timbre of Demise”, and closer “Vanishing Existence” Grönqvist finds that perfect balance between the hypnotic, psychedelic atmosphere and pummeling grooves, and the way that everything flows on these tracks really draws you in. There are a few rough spots, as sometimes the drumming transitions between fast and slow parts sound a bit off and don’t flow as seamlessly as they should, and some of the patterns do run together over repeat listens. But as a whole, The Secret of Death felt a bit more consistent from beginning to end compared to the last few full lengths.
Tommi Grönqvist’s growls are a bit more subdued compared to some of the other Finnish death metal vocalists out there, and as a result they often feel like they’re just barely audible above the denseness of the instrumentals. This may prove to be an acquired taste for some, as it gives the performance this almost echoey and mysterious tone compared to the more abrasive and chaotic elements that others in the same style have to offer. But I’ve found there has been a consistency to the approach since Grönqvist stepped in on vocal duties almost a decade ago, and the way the growls reverberate just above the layers of sound fits the music that Desecresy writes. Don’t expect any radically different cadences or shifts to higher shrieks, but the way the verses are spaced out does keep things from getting repetitive and keeps that murkier, ominous atmosphere consistent for the entire album.
This type of slower and deliberately repetitive death and death/doom aren’t for everyone, but for those that can appreciate the hypnotic approach there’s plenty of substance on Descresy’s latest offering. There have been some subtle shifts to the way the atmospheric elements are utilized and they reach greater heights than before, and when you combine that with the return to a murkier and cavernous production that makes this effort stand out a bit more to me than the last few. It’s clear that Tommi Grönqvist has a very specific vision, and there’s something to be said for the consistency at which he executes it from album to album. The Secret of Death is available from Xtreem Music.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg