ELYSIAN INFERNO (VINYL)

Four years after their devastating debut demo, Chicago death merchants Berator vomit forth twenty minutes of fierce, old school black / death on coke via Dark Descent Records. In an age where an over-polished sound is the norm, Elysian Inferno delivers a welcome reminder of just how ferocious and vehement extreme metal can be. Guitarist Richard Olsen, who left behind his Profanatica duties to focus on Berator full-time, stresses the importance of production:
'The Berator EP was tracked live, just me and Dan [Klein] (drums) in his studio, and we built around those live tracks for the record, which in itself, gives it a level of raw power you can't get from a click. Tim Pearson (bass, ex-The Chasm) and Pat Clancy (guitar, ex- Nachtmystium) then added their parts. The sound is entrancing, excruciating and insane, for people who appreciate forward, to the point, nonstop riffs. It's a seamless record meant to be heard as twenty some-odd straight minutes of rhythm and violence.' The band will embark on a US tour in late May, including a performance at Decibel Magazine's Metal and Beer Festival in Philadelphia.