{"id":12778,"date":"2013-06-18T00:00:10","date_gmt":"2013-06-18T00:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=12778"},"modified":"2013-06-28T17:15:01","modified_gmt":"2013-06-28T17:15:01","slug":"album-review-pest-the-crowning-horror","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/album-review-pest-the-crowning-horror\/","title":{"rendered":"PEST – The Crowning Horror (2013) | Album \/ EP Reviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

PEST
The Crowning Horror<\/strong><\/span>
\n\"\"
\nAgonia (2013)<\/span>
Rating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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Sweden\u2019s Pest has been involved in the black metal scene since 1997, although their first full-length opus didn\u2019t emerge until 2003 under the title of Desecration. Hailing from Stockholm, Pest has, for most of its lifespan, consisted of two members: Necro (drums, guitars, vocals) and Equimanthorn (bass, guitars).<\/p>\n

The Crowning Horror<\/em> is the band\u2019s fourth full-length album, and their first for Agonia Records. Those of you who\u2019ve been privileged to experience Pest in the past will not be disappointed by another visit to the creaky realms of old school black metal.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no surprise that the bassist is called Equimanthorn, as Pest\u2019s vintage black \u2019n\u2019 roll is very much of that punk-crusted Bathory (who had a song called \u2018Equimanthorn\u2019 on their 1987 opus, Under The Sign Of The Black Mark<\/em><\/a>) style of evil; formidable yet refreshing and often groove-based too.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m sure the devilish duo won\u2019t mind me saying that their oily brand of black metal is very much from the same dank basement as Darkthrone<\/a> and Celtic Frost, but that\u2019s not to say these guys sound like either of those legendary bands… far from it in fact. Pest has always been an underrated band who has bridged the gap between obscure 80s metal and the rawer but heavier gurgles of, say, Nifelheim.<\/p>\n

Although the opening track, \u2018The Funeral Hours\u2019, is merely an atmospheric introduction, we\u2019re soon under way into the realms of death with the sordid garage roughness of \u2018A Face Obscured By Death\u2019, which is the epitome of how real old school black metal should be played. The guitars are oily yet catchy and the drums reek of that vintage 80s metal stench, galloping at pace behind the grim yet accessible vocal sneer.<\/p>\n

However, if it\u2019s true metal you\u2019re after, then look no further than the Iron Maiden-esque rumble of \u2018Volcanic Eyes\u2019, which has to be one of the best black metal songs I\u2019ve heard for years. It brings to mind Darkthrone at their most nostalgic in those feisty rhythms, and Necro\u2019s vocals are far more spiteful over those thrash riffs.<\/p>\n

\u2018Devil\u2019s Mark\u2019 is equally joyous and fiery. It stomps in on an absolute killer buzzing riff and simple, stripped back drum, leading us into some stark, New Wave Of British Heavy Metal-styled groove. Fantastic stuff.<\/p>\n

Pest are very much leaders of their field, but much ignored over the years, and yet what they are doing is combining that Venom \/ Bathory level of grimness with far catchier melodies, but all the while remaining malevolent.<\/p>\n

\u2018Holocaust\u2019 lives up to its name because it\u2019s one of the album\u2019s fastest tracks, a blitzkrieg of a number that rattles by on an unhealthy tin-can drum and Necro\u2019s harsh rasps. It sounds like a track that never made Bathory\u2019s ill-lit debut, such is its nefarious splendour.<\/p>\n

The same could also be said for the ancient sounding \u2018The Abomination Of The God\u2019 and the threatening echoes of \u2018Thirteen Chimes\u2019. The latter is probably the only track on the opus that could have benefited from a few symphonic touches, but I\u2019m ever thankful for its primitive appearance as the vocals become a watery growl.<\/p>\n

There isn\u2019t enough of this old school black metal about, as too many bands are jumping on bandwagons. If you like your music primal and stark but heavy and wicked all the same though, then The Crowning Horror<\/em> should fill the gaps of Darkthrone inactivity, but also take you back to those claustrophobic days when Bathory ruled the earth and the nether regions. There\u2019s no doubt that Pest are as black \u2019n\u2019 roll as it gets.<\/p>\n

Neil Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PESTThe Crowning Horror Agonia (2013)Rating: 8\/10 Sweden\u2019s Pest has been involved in the black metal scene since 1997, although their first full-length opus didn\u2019t emerge until 2003 under the title of Desecration. Hailing from Stockholm, Pest has, for most of its lifespan, consisted of two members: Necro (drums, guitars, vocals) and Equimanthorn (bass, guitars). The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,623],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-album-ep-reviews","category-pest"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12778","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12778"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12778\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12787,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12778\/revisions\/12787"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12778"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12778"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12778"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}