Review by Fernando on April 30, 2023.

The Kolkata Inner Order strikes again! This time with Kaal Nagini, a new entity from the increasingly evergreen Indian extreme metal underground who through the Inner Order’s stalwart ally from the West, Iron Bonehead released their debut EP Refracted Lights Of A Blind God.

Now most of the true maniacs of death metal and especially the more obscure side are already familiar with the scene at Kolkata, and much like its predecessors. Kaal Nagini play unrelenting and merciless death metal with layers of harsh noise and filled with vitriol and absolute disdain for humanity. That being said, and much like their brethren, Kaal Nagini is its own entity and has its own sound. The band is composed of vocalist ChVZAR, guitarist and bassist OTzADAGOWAH, and surprisingly a Thai veteran from the Thailand underground, MVOQH on drums. And these three from the onset with this EP let the listener know exactly what they stand for, which is utter sonic devastation. And it is MVOQH who truly stands out, his drumming is the driving force of violence that gives these songs their destructive qualities, as the band reaches near inhuman levels of speed which is then boosted by OTzADAGOWAH’s string onslaught and the bestial howls of ChVZAR to create the most caustic sounding death metal that pushes the extremes of the genre to their next stage. In short, this record will truly put your tolerance for noise to the test, and at no point does Kaal Nagini let up, if you can’t keep up, you might as well listen to the latest flavor of the week, cookie cutter OSDM band.

In more technical terms, the most interesting part of Kaal Nagini’s abrasive sound is actually not just how fast and downtuned it is, but it's actually their use of martial ambiance, all the songs open or close with synthesized noise soundscapes that create an ominous atmosphere as a preamble to all the chaos that comprises most of the music. It's interesting how the band were able to use both chaotically aggressive death metal with very understated but no less visceral martial ambient and for both to feel cohesive to the band’s overall intent and execution. However one thing I found myself enjoying more was those ambient parts which surprised me since I’m not that big on ambient music. That’s not to say that their death metal isn’t interesting or unique, as mentioned above the speed and brutality in this EP is jaw dropping, and the production the band employed works very well as they overcame having a plastic production, as well as not having their music induce migraines via inaudible distorted noise at 400 bmp. But and on the bright side, as a first taste and a display of what Kaal Nagini are capable this is a remarkable EP and whenever they decide to release an LP I’ll be interested to see if they’ll expand on the ambiance, or double down on their unhinged brand of bestial death metal, for lack of a better descriptor.

Overall Kaal Nagini did a good job at presenting themselves, and bolstering the ranks of the Kolkata Inner Order and their ongoing crusade against modernity.

Best tracks: 'Refracted Lights Of A Blind God', 'Double Tongued Serpent Of Kú'

Rating: 8 out of 10

Review by Fran on April 27, 2022.

Born from the ashes of Hermética -the most prominent latinamerican thrash metal band after Sepultura- Malón marked the evolution from the vintage 80’s sound to the digital era sound and groove-influenced composition in our region. Their Brazilian counterpart included etchnic influences to their grooves though, Malón kept the hard-rock riffing and the speed and ferocity from their Hermética days, that’s why I love them so much. Hermética’s last album (“Víctimas del Vaciamiento” from 1993) featured a modern production too, but it isn’t as inspired and powerful as the consecutive couple of Malón’s registers. Nineteen years later, they released this album named Nuevo Orden Mundial... I find a much more mature band here, but the energy and authenticity is intact.

The thrashing beat is still raging in these twelve tracks, some of them are fast numbers like most of Malón classics but most of them are a little bit slower and mid-tempo; epic songs though. 'Nuevo Orden Mundial', the record opener, 'Recordar Para No Olvidar' and 'Triste Final' have the most of those fast paced sections. These fast bullets sound fresh and are well coined but, as time goes by and musicians grow old they find that music as a means of expression is very dynamic; you have to portray exactly how you feel in a particular moment and none feels exactly the same as twenty years before, that’s for sure. That’s why I think the band feels more comfortable with a heavier mid-paced riffing style, the rest of the cuts dwell between that traditional heavy metal beat and heavy breakdowns. 'Deshacer El Mundo' is a cover from spanish rock band Héroes Del Silencio. While it isn’t an exact copy from the original version, they kept the main chords and played them way heavier, in Malón’s fashion. The last track 'Una Luz' is actually a power ballad, sung by the band’s guitarist, Tano Romano, and features acoustic verses and melodic leads that are not to be found on any of the other songs.

Pato Strunz, the band’s longtime drummer, sounds in perfect shape. Double bass drum parts sound simply amazing, the cymbal work is world class and so are his drum breaks. Bassist Karlos Cuadrado plays simple bass lines along with the riffs and displays a rich tone with a slight distortion and the trademark “pick” sound. El Tano Romano’s composition signature is unique and unforgettable, present on every song. His leads are a masterclass of soloing and as I said before, he occasionally collaborates with some of the vocals. Claudio O’Connor, the band’s vocalist, has a high pitched and raspy tone. He doesn’t sound as potent as he did in the early days; his falsettos aren’t as long but he still manages to deliver the lyrics convincingly, with anger. Lyrically, the band deals with social issues… in fact, a couple of days ago on March the 24th, Argentinians commemorate the victims from the dictatorship that scourged the country from 1976 to 1983 and I think those lyrics fit pretty well within that concept.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10