Hailing from County Antrim, Enshroud bring a collective death metal masterpiece to life with their second album ‘Mortal’. This is a gritty, riff-driven monster that pulls no punches, and throws plenty of them. The slow, doom-filled opener ‘Dust to Dust’ growls underneath powerful vocals and punishing guitars and drum, albeit with a sense of apprehension about the tone. This is soon remedied with the monarch of aggression that is ‘Frailty’; a polished diamond explaining the fury at the loss of a loved one due to disease. This may hit home with a lot of people, but metal is about explaining anger at the world in whatever shape it may take and Enshroud delivers the message very clearly.
‘A Fate For No One’ hammers this point home again, outlining the pointless suffering that a loved one goes through before the end. It’s almost as if the band themselves have put their own spin on that journey. If rage could be bottled, this would do well at self-help classes. ‘Infestation’ and ‘War Within’ sing from the same hymn sheet but change the tempo and pace, especially in the drums and guitar sections. The latter is a defiant scream at fate; a warcry that vows resilience against whatever attack is being carried out. A statement released by the band themselves confirm this as “an exploration int the mindset of both the onlooker and sufferer of terminal illness, mixing the emotional experience of anger, sadness, resentment, hopelessness, and acceptance”. This album has enough of each of those emotions for
another album.
‘‘Safe in Forever’ resets the dial a bit, starting slowly and solemly with echoing vocals and guitar, reminiscent of Pantera’s Cemetery Gates. This is a burning ode to regret (I feel that vibe can be attributed to a lot of this album’s content); a lament at opportunities not taken and important time wasted. The
orchestral compilation enhances this feeling throughout the entire track and is unmistakable in its emotion. ‘The Decay’ starts to flex the anger muscles again, starting eerily and growing in intensity. Consistence in the drum section keeps the pace at a finely tuned rhythm, but the master stroke is the
guitar riffs that permeate every single cell that makes up this song. The killing blow comes from the final track ‘Fallen Time’, littered with vocal harmonies and chord strikes in the background that ring out to prolong the sense of foreboding that Enshroud so expertly deliver. This is also a slow burner, but this time, it is an acceptance statement; acknowledging the futility of being angry at something that will proceed with or without your emotions involved. It’s almost as if they are saying goodbye to someone who
is watching them play this song. It’s beautifully morbid, evoking pity for someone going through unimaginable distress. A thousand-yard-stare would not be alien to the listener once they have heard this song a few times.
This album is simply superb; it is thought-provoking and evokes a certain panic at the thought of someone cherished being at the mercy of a disease that cannot be taken down easily. The band really have taken
their art form and given it a physical one, all the while guarding themselves supremely. At the time of writing, their identities remain a secret – so giving kudos to the musicians will have to be a collective effort. This is an outstanding body of work, and a fine successor to their debut album ‘Darkness Grips Us All’.
Words: Markson
Burning Metal 