Puteraeon - Cult Cthulhu

Swedish death metal is a trend that has been repeated countless times and is yet to be manipulated and manifested by more bands in the future. Although many acts simply copy the tasteful tone and crunchy hardcore tinged incursions of Dismember, Grave, Grotesque or Entombed, one cannot doubt that Puteraeon, a relatively young Swedish death metal band are much more dominant over the genre’s aesthetics compared to their peers, as they grasp the sound and deform it, mangling it into several pieces that are not impervious to changes and queerer influences. This is, at least what seems to be the case in their sophomore, ‘’Cult Cthulhu’’. They show that they’re aplomb and open for new influences, although stricter fans will be happy to know that experimentation is not overdosed, and massive, guitar with a spectral touch of brooding melodies are still quite well working, pummelling their way through the listener’s ears.

Compared to their debut, Puteraeon give more room to cathartic expressions and melodies quadrants that form up most of the diversity of the riffs. Awkward, but I relate them to Necrovation as both bands had a change is sound after releasing one rather standard and eclectic piece of Swedish death metal, simple, nonetheless still very strong by all standards. Necrovation came through with a bigger and far more changed sound, adding almost classical overtones into the heavy churning of hostile old school death metal, while Puteraeon simply added subdued melodies under the hefty cloak of chainsaw driven guitars and bass lines, and expanding their tone into a more spacious one, to give off a nice dose of atmosphere. ‘’Necrovation’’, which came out mere months before this album, worshipped ethereal pulchritude and was musically tweaked a lot, but such a huge change is not seen on ‘’Cult Cthulhu’’, although I still a huge sucker for its thickly embroidered spurts of crushing hostility.

I’m simply very content with the release as it did not turned out to be forty four minutes of chugs and furious barking, but it turned out to be a much more intriguing bag of riffs that lasted forty four minutes, propulsive and lurching. You’ll notice a semi-transparent black metal tide flowing over you spectrally especially in ‘’Children Of Dagon’’, while doomy goodness is laid upon absolutely gigantic magnifications of amplification on ‘’The Great Epidemic of 1846’’ and ‘’Liberation’’, sweltering with epic and atmospheric elements, but Puteraeon always make you feel home with classy, chunky attacks from ‘’Flesh Architect’’ or ‘’In The Vault’’ – both as forceful as robust iron hammers. I suppose some of the increased melodies and gloomy aspects came from their increased love for Lovecraftian themes, and to be honest, as a fan of the horror master himself, I found the fresh attributes to be well placed. As a whole, ‘’Cult Cthulhu’’ redeems you from your lust for massive guitars and filters, but it also offers it with slight distinctions, so you’re bored to death. We have so many Swedish hounds now at hand that I honestly don’t know where to keep them, so someone had better find a solution. 

Highlights:

In The Vault

Flesh Architect 

The Great Epidemic Of 1846

The Azathoth Cycle 

Rating: 88%