Sonus Mortis - Of Red Barren Earth

 SONUS MORTIS is an extreme metal band from Dublin, Ireland.  It is actually a one man project from Kevin Byrne. He started the band in 2013 and ‘Of Red Barren Earth’ is his seventh full length album, in addition to a demo release in 2013.

I first discovered SONUS MORTIS way back in 2016, when I reviewed the masterful ‘Hail the Tragedies of Man.’ It was among the first albums I reviewed and the band has never had a dull moment since then.  With that being said, Byrne has managed to once again surpass and raise his own bar with ‘OF RED BARREN EARTH,’ because it is the best SONUS MORTIS album yet.

The early years of the band had a doom sound but as the band grew so did the influences, incorporating symphonic, black, melodic and death metal elements.  ‘OF RED BARREN EARTH,’ returns the project to its doom roots while still retaining all the progression made over the years.  Some of the keys/symphonics even add a folkish flavor to the music, such as the beginning of ‘AMONG THE MARROW AND THE MACHINES.’

One of the most impressive aspects of the album is just how well balanced it is, in terms of all the different elements that it weaves together.  The symphonics are very well integrated, acting as another piece of this musical tapestry instead of just being epic for the sake of it or doing nothing but adding in a backdrop.

The guitars are menacing, a tone that hits the sweet spot between heavy without being overbearing.  Melodic and more extreme riffs find equal time as well, making an album that flows from one track to the next without a second wasted.  The rhythm section is equally as powerful, the bass playing the important role of making the overall sound very full yet being adventurous in its own right.  I’m not sure if the drums are live or programmed (they sound live though) but either way they are written well into the very foundations of the music.

The aforementioned ‘AMONG THE MARROW AND THE MACHINES’ gives off a vibe that definitely speaks of a synthesis between both flesh and metal, the song sounding both futuristic, modern and yet respectful of the past all at once.  The vocals are absolutely vicious—Byrne only continues to improve his growls and screams. 

The music is slow to mid paced, and the doom fan in me appreciates the more methodical and tragic atmosphere the album presents. The drums are intricate and clever, always there to provide a strong anchor yet allow enough room for the song writing to breathe.

‘OVERWHELMING MASS,’ has an operatic feel with the usage of the cleans in the beginning but also because of just how huge in scope the song is.  It’s under five minutes in length but it is epic as hell.  The keys/symphonics are absolutely soaring and the clean vocals hit hard.  Throw in sweltering riffs and blackened death growls and we have a song that is catchy but hard hitting at the same time. The ending solo, bolstered by the furious double bass, ends the song on a high note.

The title track is one of the best songs on the album…..just grandiose and gorgeous but also depressing and apocalyptic, .The song gets darker and more intense as it moves forward, the layers piling up on each other until it becomes totally engrossing.  The drumming is a highlight too, ramping up the climatic energy with ease yet still allowing the sorrowful tones to ‘shine’ through.

‘HARBINGER OF DOOM,’ is one of the songs released before the album and it is easy to see why—-it provides a great overview of the album’s style and what Byrne is going for.  The guitars knock it out of the park by providing harrowing moments that work against the sprawling keys but still take a more melodic route when needed. The portions of clean vocals are catchy and the extreme vocals are fantastic and capture the song’s fervor. 

The final song is ‘THE THREADS OF LIFE,’ which just might be the band’s best song.  The song wastes no time, filling in the eight and a half minutes with everything needed to end the album on the highest of highs.  Gothic doom like textures open the song, vicious blackened melodic death owns the middle part but the song comes full circle near the end.

‘OF RED BARREN EARTH’ is a shining example of what happens when extra care is given to song writing on a level that plays it all out in an organic, natural way.  SONUS MORTIS are unstoppable at this point and I can’t wait to see what comes next.