Costa Rica’s Astriferous churns the grave soil with malevolent glee on the ripping death metal of Atavistic Unraveling.
Release date: June 26, 2026 | Me Saco Un Ojo | Bandcamp | Instagram
Oh, death metal, you old dog. I’m not sure I could count the number of times I’ve felt like I’ve gotten burned out on the genre, only for some band to come along and kick the threat of encroaching apathy squarely in the ass and remind me why the genre is a perennial favorite of mine. Hell, it’s already happened this once year with that experimental new Reeking Aura album. And that time has come again, this time thanks to a far more traditional take on the genre courtesy of the gentlemen in Astriferous.
Given, I figured Astriferous would be dropping a worthy album with Atavistic Unraveling. They already won me over with their savage 2023 debut Pulsations from the Black Orb. That album, alongside the debut from Bloodsoaked Necrovoid (one of the best death metal band names) and the various works of Mortual, have made for the recent Costa Rican death metal scene being on of those death metal hotbeds I watch eagerly. Now, Astriferous doesn’t have a particularly revolutionary spin on the sound. The muck-scraping heft of Incantation, the alien phrasings of Morbid Angel, a dollop of the dark weirdness of Demilich and their Finnish brethren, and you pretty much have Astriferous‘ approach down.
The most vital piece of this puzzle, though, is that Astriferous just does this sound damn well. From the squealing feedback that inaugurates “Carriers of the Curse” ceding to those lurching guitars, Atavistic Unraveling is replete with grimy, nasty riffs bearing an evil streak. Be it lacerating tremolos, chunkier chords, or a more flowing groove, there’s nary a moment across the album where you couldn’t cheerfully bang your head while scowling at the sheer meanness of the music. Astriferous knows where their strengths are, and beyond a couple (oddly understated) atonal solos, the riff reigns supreme.
Of course, that’s not to say the band doesn’t pull out a couple cool tricks or throw some spicy curveballs into their mix. For instance, though they vanish across the center of the album, “Carriers of the Curse” and “The Floating Catacombs” both make use of eerie synthesizers to underpin their less heavy moments. The slowdown in the former track even feels melodic compared to the rest of the album. Likewise, when the monolithic closer “Resonance Cascade” kicks off, the band slides into a far more doomy mood aided by some more spooky synth work.
Meanwhile, the punkish drum beat that kicks off “Arcane Demonomania” gives the track a sprightly energy that sets it apart from much of the rest of Atavistic Unraveling. “Proto Embryo”, by contrast, has a choppy rhythm that almost feels like an early 90’s progressive death metal track before launching into delightfully Demilich-ian warped, knotty chords. “Dissolution of Eternity” and “Mnemonic Phenomena” are a little more down-the-line sonically, but they’re such well written death metal tracks that any lack of novelty can be easily forgiven and then some.
Above all, it has to be said that Atavistic Unraveling sounds wonderful. The mix is thunderous, giving a tremendous amount of heft to the guitars and bass, while the drums (expertly handled as they are) sound positively massive. The growls resonate well without drowning out the instruments, and despite the morass that the music conjures up, it’s a pleasantly decipherable sound for the genre that knows exactly what to boost at what times. Maybe the synths could cut through more when they do show up, but hey, are we really listening to some cavernous old school death metal for keyboards?
Once again, death metal proves its continued relevance to me. Really, it shouldn’t be surprising for any band signed to Me Saco Un Ojo, but Astriferous once again proves themselves one of the brightest (or, uh, darkest?) stars in the current death metal sky. Atavistic Unraveling is punishing, it’s evil, and it is an absolute blast for anyone who loves death metal the classic way, drenched in malevolence and groove. We could all do with unraveling now and then, and Astriferous has us covered.
