Here’s a band that is quite unique on many fronts, but at this point I am not sure how to properly describe the music of Inverticrux. My attempt though goes as follows: horrific sounds and doomy guitars, operatic flourishes in the vocal department and add a dash of horror film soundtrack to round things out. Everything is culled together in a ghastly fashion to create an interesting palette of gourmet designed horror music.
I hear elements of early Candlemass, King Diamond and Celtic Frost, and maybe slight nods to Dead Can Dance, but that is not entirely accurate for a description. Inverticrux are heavy on the horror dynamics, but their official bio describes them as - suicidal blackened thrash death stoner doom from the outer reaches of the great empty beyond; you have to love that description! For my tastes though, it takes several listens to really ingest the band’s sound. Now it’s not necessarily a bad thing, just saying you need a little patience with it to get the full effect.
If you do stick with it, there’s a big payoff and since I am a huge horror fan, I rather took to this quite quickly. My two favorite tracks were “Here Fades all Worldly Pleasures” and “Attack of the Scarecrow Clowns from Planet Spider.” Both songs are epic in length and demonstrate that willingness to expand one’s notion of what is acceptable in a song. The demonic sounds at the end of Worldly Pleasures was bone chilling to the ears and what a masterstroke it was to sample Orson Welles’s War of the worlds for ending of Attack – I say bravo for that!
The man behind the band is vocalist Raypissed and he does all the artwork for the albums. He definitely has a dark artistic vision and strives to push the musical boundaries on all levels, so Inverticrux is like his own continual horror movie, only set to music. His vocals are unique, often channeling the dark spirits of Thomas Gabriel Warrior, King Diamond and throw in dash of Messiah Marcolin into the cauldron of deviant singers. He’s got all that going for him and like I said have a little patience and it will ultimately appease the sadist in you.
Inverticrux are a delight for my tastes, especially how they bring the spirit of dark metal to life, conjuring dark moods and bring you a wide range of styles to match it all. You can get the album through Exalted Woe Records and I suggest going out and doing so immediately. You won’t be disappointed.
Kenneth Gallant, Editor HMS
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