Marrowomb - Phisenomie

Marrowomb is a black/death metal solo project from musician Frank Lato, (Polyptych, Headshrinker, Endmember). He handles all the vocals and instruments, except for the drums which feature the always impressive Kévin Paradis.  

For a debut album, “Phisenomie,” is a very solid album. It isn’t going to win any awards for innovation or stepping outside the box but it offers something just as potent: uncompromising extreme metal.  

Every song is good without any real weak spots to speak of. Its run time of 46 minutes across 8 songs makes it a smooth listen. In a way, the lack of pretense is refreshing to a degree; This is definitely one of those albums you can throw on and be guaranteed a good time. 

What you see (well, hear in this case) is what you get. There aren't any bells and whistles. The production/mix is rock solid as well, offering no surprises or hiding any of the instruments. Everything is clear, concise but also razor sharp and crushing.  

The opening song, “Phantasia Kateleptike,” is a good way to start the album—if you like this song, the rest of the album will definitely appeal to you. After a brief few seconds of sound bites, the song opens the floodgates with a massive scream, rumbling drums, and dense riffs. Immediately, this album settles in with a very heavy, dense atmosphere. There is always something going on, the carnage moving ever forward. It is quite unrelenting and with a good pair of headphones on, it can sound quite maddening.I love the groove in this song and Paradis compliments it perfectly with his own style that effortlessly pushes the song through to the other side.  

“Vicarious Visage,” uses synths/keys in a very subtle way but it perfectly heightens the tension in the song. Both Lato and Paradis give an unrelenting performance. Around the 3:37 mark, the song takes a left turn, entering a passage that’s clean but creepy with a fantastic bass drop. The buildup is great and the song ends on a rather doom inspired approach.  

“Black Gossamer,” keeps the dismal atmosphere rolling but with waves and waves of dirty grooves, rapid fire rhythms, and drums that take a tight control of the tempo. The middle of the song is like a feeding frenzy, each instrument going for blood before running through a blistering passage of surprisingly catchy riffs. 

But the centerpiece of the album, and by far my favorite, is actually the last song, “Despairloom.” This is a nearly 12 minute epic that takes everything good about the album and vomits it forth in an incredible way. It begins slow and suffocating, dull melodies building off the riffs as this monster moves at glacial pace, letting the atmosphere sink it really well. The riffs get more detailed as the song moves forward, the tempo picking up just enough to let the song’s natural flow work. The solo around the 2:40 mark is pretty slick, matches the atmosphere of the song but presenting it in a different flavor. 

The middle portion of the song is a deadly exchange between the extreme ends of black and death metal, a harrowing journey that crawls out of the muck of the doom metal intro. The final part of the song takes a more atmospheric turn, a deadly combination of heavy and light elements that ends the album strongly.

Marrowomb’s “Phisenomie,” is a debut album that leaves me wanting more and has grab my attention—I’m definitely interested in what else Lato can do with this project.  

Rating: Solid