Possession, His Best Deceit
There aren’t too many albums (let alone demos) out that make you feel as though you’re throat, head and shoulders are actively being mauled by the Devil’s own personal horde of rabid, Satanic pitbulls. But that’s exactly what we’ve got here with this four track, aural thrashing from Belgium’s Possession.
His Best Deceit brings three original tracks and a Sepultura cover to the blasphemous dinner table in a surge of bestial black metal that is raw, aggressive and, at its best moments, ghastly. I don’t like to throw around the word “grim” all that often in describing black metal, but fuck me if this shit ain’t just that. From the onset of opener “Intro – Possession” (and it’s theatrical though a bit predictable opening minute and a half), this four piece are hell bent on delivering some seriously old-school, vicious black metal as grimly and as violently as possible.
The aforementioned intro eventually gets under way with a short-lived, but steady build-up before letting loose those hungry as fuck pitbulls that Satan’s been starving, awaiting your arrival. The music is all over the place as animalistic drum work dominates, echoing screams and swirling guitars. This demo is pretty clean, but still sounds as though it were recorded in someone’s basement — an effect which only maximizes the songs’ appeal.
As vicious as the demo’s opener was, “The Truth of Cain” makes it look like a cheerful nun out for a walk in the park. This song is as grimey and as fueled with hatred as you can find. Rabid blasts, churning guitars and the frantic, echoey screams combine for a sound that is almost overwhelming. As aggressively single-minded as these guys may seem, they do realize the even the most vitriolic of fans even need a break every now and again. While this song is full-throttle, it does slow about half way through for a sick lead to come out and play and for you to catch your breath before those pitbulls come around for another attack.
The title track is a churning well of seething hatred and is about as off-kilter as the guys get with their original material. It’s a song that will is loose, sometimes messy, but still 100% addictive in the band’s levels of energy and vehemence. It also leads in nicely to the unrelenting cover of Sepultura’s “Necromancer,” which may be one of the most unhinged takes on the song that I’ve ever heard.
Demos are usually pretty damn raw and His Best Deceit is no exception, but the album’s uncompromising delivery and grimness only make it that much more appealing. I’d like to see what these guys are capable of with a little more maturation and time in a proper studio. For now, this is a pretty kick ass offering.