03 Tongue of Iron

from Archaic Bloodshed

July 21st, 2023

3 tracks

13:43

Archaic Bloodshed

03 Tongue of Iron

0:00

5:40

03 Tongue of Iron

Embodied Torment

Over a score of nobles slain by Widukind Two envoys cut down, the third flying with a tale of woe Mighty Prince Carolus girded with gleaming arms And plumed helm marched upon the men of Saxony with vengeful haste Massacring them through bloodied shields and bellicose spears Strength of courage and blood smeared arrows won the field for the king Dragging the surviving forest dwellers to Verden There on the banks of the river Aller With a word from his iron tongue the headsman's axe fell continuously on Time and again Bathing the fields crimson As heads did begin to roll Those spared the blade’s caress coerced to bathe in the water Promising their immortal souls To a god not of their ken Despite this humiliation Saxony continued To resist in vain Their ancient ways forbidden On pain of torture or execution

3:59

Archaic Bloodshed marks the return of California's brutal death metal warriors Embodied Torment. Darker and more atmospheric than before, this three-song EP invokes dismal chapters of human history in a violent assault while drawing on a wide range of extreme metal traditions.

Embodied Torment first emerged in 2012 in Northern California and gradually unleashed a savage form of death metal drawing comparisons to genre masters Disgorge (USA), Brodequin, and Defeated Sanity, with atmospheric moments evoking funeral doom and black metal. Freshly returned from years in dormancy, the band now includes brutal death veterans Andrew Smith (Splattered), Mark Chandler (Orchidectomy, Reviled, Into The Ashes), and Alex Cohen (Malignancy (live), Involuntary Convulsion, Contrarian) alongside founding guitarist Joaquin Chavez.

Credits

Andrew Smith - Vocals
Joaquin Chavez - Guitars, Backing Vocals
Mark Chandler - Bass
Alex Cohen - Drums

Mixed and mastered at 18 Source Productions in Sacramento, with cover design by guitarist Joaquin Chavez based on Pieter Bruegel the Elder's "The Suicide of Saul" (1562).

Press

Terminus Extreme Metal Podcast

07/20/2023

"Spiritually in keeping with the band's previous work, but it also had a lot more to offer... catchy, immediate riffs in them alongside huge walls of chromatic blasting. There's a ton of dynamics across these three tracks, they're littered with individual moments that are immediately memorable and exciting, and overall I think it's an outstanding effort to bring this ordinarily completely unapproachable style of brutal death into something that a more typical listener could appreciate."

Hate Meditations

07/13/2023

"Boasting a greater degree of fluidity and contrast than your standard brutal death metal package, California’s Embodied Torment offer up a brief but refreshing EP of dense chaos metal. It straddles the border between the mechanistic tech death of Devangelic or Putridity and a more organic, intuitive lineage akin to a hyper fast Morbid Angel... Refreshes the format of tech death by destabilising the brutalist aesthetic with the promise of hope."

Mystification Zine

07/17/2023

"Their whole gig intends to put a darker spin on a style of brutal death which still holds reverence for classic Suffocation but takes it to the absurd extreme, truly volatile stuff along the lines of the first Defeated Sanity record and of course Disgorge... outrageous brutal death carving its own trench."

Those Once Loyal Blog

08/18/2023

"I love the juxtaposition of Embodied Torment’s clear desire to be as heavy and brutal as humanly possible with their impassioned moments of openess and killer guitar leads."

03 Tongue of Iron

from Archaic Bloodshed

Credits

Press

Terminus Extreme Metal Podcast

Hate Meditations

Mystification Zine

Those Once Loyal Blog

Tags

Press

Terminus Extreme Metal Podcast

Hate Meditations

Mystification Zine

Those Once Loyal Blog