Band: Panchrysia
CD Title: Deathcult Salvation
Year: 2008
Website: panchrysia.be
MySpace: Currently unknown
Label: Karisma Records DA and Dark Essence Records
Featured on: Loucifer Speaks exclusive
Rating: 9.8 / 10
More Links: Please start a thread in the Loucifer Speaks forum

Creepy. Dark. Foreboding. These are just a few words that could describe the latest release from Panchrysia. Before I popped this little beast into the CD player I really thought that this was just going to be your standard run-of-the-mill Black Metal. While this album does have some run-of-the-mill elements, it separates itself from the herd in a number of effective ways - creepy female vocals and mournful horns are a couple that really stood out for me.

The vocals tear and rip their way through the mix and ooze a huge amount of confidence and dark intent. I'm told that the additional vocals here are courtesy of none other than Mortuus from Marduk/Funeral Mist - so there's an unmistakable professional feel to them. The near-ballad "Morituri Te Salutant" is savagely beautiful and, at times, quite nerve-racking. This is not an album for the faint of heart. Other than the previously mentioned "Morituri...", the tracks that really grabbed my attention were "Cult Driven", "Fogbound" (you have no idea how much I love this track) and "Phantom Asylum".

Every listen to "Deathcult Salvation" highlights something new - a vocal, a melody or some instrumentation that you didn't notice on previous sittings. This is an album that could sit quite happily in my 'Favourites from 2008' list and I'm more than happy to hand it a 9.8 out 10. This is a grotesque, yet delicious, work of art.