You may have recalled how not long ago we introduced you to a new black metal band from the Bay Area called Torture Chamber, led by (I believe?) now seventeen year old Connor Allen, and rounded out by his homies coming from the equally awesome Bay Area black cult Xenotaph. Now, stop and reflect on this for a second. This kid is only seventeen, but his band pounds out the meanest, most filthy, lurid and vile black metal you could think of. I mean, for fuck’s sake, there are bands led by friggin’ forty year olds with twenty years of experience playing music behind them and they will still never write shit this good, even when they will be fucking seventy years old and have fifty years of playing music behind them. Something to reflect upon. Torture Chamber are indeed special in this. If they are that good at this age, where will they fucking be in twenty years? Who knows, maybe ruling hell itself for all that we know.
Anyway, the band have just released a new EP, which, needless to say, rules. Titled Qayin this new release once again finds the band messing with their staple form of schizoid, disembodied, frenetic and lurid black metal. This time though there seems to be something more weird and fucked up going on in this band’s music, and there is a clear evolution of sorts being shown in this band’s sonic trajectory. The songs are driven by a sinister hysteria, and appear frenetic, spastic and out of fucking control. I wanna say that this new music reminds me of Peste Noire or Neige Morte in some ways, and its almost hysterical putrid restlessness does at times remind me of the “French” school of things in some ways, but take that with a grain of salt, as simply put, the band’s music kinda defies any attempts to fully categorize it to start with anyway.
What I can say for sure is that the band definitely have their own thing going on, and are starting to develop their own style and musical personality, which, make no mistake, is still firmly built upon solid and grand foundations of proud black metal traditionalism, mainly drawing inspiration from bands like Watain, early Gorgoroth, Dark Funeral, Emperor and all that came from the glorious days of 90’s Scandinavian black metal. I strongly recommend to anyone who isn’t biased or isn’t a knucklehead to keep their eyes and ears on this band, cause at that age, writing shit like this is not normal, and while the dudes are already really fucking good at what they do, the band is still destined to inevitably mature and grow even further, and we can’t wait what to see what they pull out next. In the meantime, stream Qayin herein, support these boys in any way possible, and feast on the lurid and vile greatness of their evil craft. Horns up!
