Review by Jeger on October 27, 2024.

When Poland’s Thunderbolt disbanded in 2007, a gaping hole was left to be filled - one of the most nefarious black metal bands to ever strike a chord or to pen a note. Their desecrations? The kind of shit that made Mayhem look like fucking amateurs. A powerful voice for Satan and for the death of Christianity! One year following Thunderbolt’s unfortunate disbandment, a new blood pact was made between former Thunderbolt guitarist/vocalist, Necrosodom and a few ex-members, and Deus Mortem was born; drenched in the blood of the lamb and hellbent on spreading evil: Satanic and sinful, majestic and brutal - herd-slaying BM crafted with malicious intent - fresh new crimes to mutilate the sanctity of Christendom in Poland. Now, with a fresh lineup, Deus Mortem is set to release their third LP, Thanatos, via Profane Spirit Productions. 

On a musical level, it’s pointless to really relate Deus Mortem to Thunderbolt. DM is most certainly their own entity, but the essence is the same - the essence of true Polish black metal and in the spirit of all things diabolical. Deus Mortem incorporate more melodic elements into their sound, a little slower in tempo and with a soulful touch to soloing. All these nuances combined, provide a more accessible product; one that can appease entry-level black metal enthusiasts along with those of a higher tier of connoisseurship. Thanatos is indeed the product of a master’s touch - a veteran’s vision of what real black metal for real black metal people should sound like, and it doesn’t get much more compositionally alluring, nor does BM in Poland ever ooze such heart & soul. From the opening track, 'Krwawy Swit', with its fluid as motor oil changes in tempo and sweet melodious passages to the slow-burning 'A Lamb In The Arms Of A Wolf' as it plays out like a eulogy for the death of what is holy and what is sacred, all the way through to the closing track, the moving 'Noesis' with its conquering-an-empire-level of epic, a masterpiece and a black metal album of the year contender if there was such a thing. 

The warm energy and the passion of Satan exuded through every second of the album's runtime. Even the most nefarious of black metal artists grow up eventually, and Thanatos is an example of not only one’s own spiritual growth but also of the kind of artistic maturation that comes only with time/experience - a seasoned crew of old heads whose adeptness is only matched by their deep understanding of black metal music and the culture behind the sound. So much more than aggression and hate; profound spiritual connotations relating to Satanism in its truest forms as relayed through genuine music that showcases the beauty of the Left Hand path, as opposed to its cruder, more blasphemous side. 

It’s albums like Thanatos that keep my passion for black metal alive and thriving. So much to appreciate on both musical and conceptual levels. An opus! An album to be remembered by, whether these guys even realize it or not. 2024 has been a dominant year for black metal and this record rests atop its own coveted vantage point over just about every BM album released thus far this year: undeniable, irresistible, and as enchanting as ritual. Eyes closed and fists clenched, welling-of-the-eyes-type BM of the most profound variety. As the desolate one sits upon his throne with his austere gaze o’er his kingdom, as the daemons writhe in fiery pits, and as adepts summon them through the ancient art of ritual, let it be to the sweet sound of Deus Mortem and Thanatos. Hail! 

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Review by Vladimir on October 27, 2024.

Over the past five years, one of the most eye-catching and diabolic black metal acts that rose to power is Poland’s Deus Mortem from Wrocław, Lower Silesia. I discovered this band around the time when their second album Kosmocide was released, but I sadly never stuck around to see how further this misanthropic militia went with Satan and victorious weapons. Nevertheless, all is coming to a change this year, and now we have a new beast on the rise, their third full-length album Thanatos with a release date of November 15th, 2024 via Profane Spirit Productions. Half a decade has passed since Kosmocide, and I believe it would be very wise to see the coming of Thanatos, the very personification of death. 

Deus Mortem brings so much chaos and death on the new album Thanatos, displaying such power in their violent and hateful riffs that absolutely annihilate alongside the maniacal blast beats and harsh shouting vocals with pure death-defying energy. From the very get-go, this album manifests such an ungodly aura and destructive performance that will easily set your speakers or earphones on fire, and it only manages to get gradually darker and more extreme as it progresses, even if it slows things a bit down on the macabre fourth track 'A Lamb In The Arms Of A Wolf' while still keeping the musical tension high at all times. If one thing is certain about this album, it’s obviously the fact that it has a great occult and hellish atmosphere that manages to stay strong during the entire journey of Thanatos, and it really gets you instantly hooked from the beginning and it never lets you go. Aside from that, even the band’s intense performance holds up nicely even during the second half of the album, as songs like 'Czarny Kruk' showcase a more interesting musical direction that Deus Mortem nicely incorporated. Possibly the heaviest tune on the album which will certainly give you the chills as it did with me, thanks to its nice transitioning from brutal blast beats to catchy mid-tempo rocking, is the seventh track 'When The Creation Tastes Of Dionysian Wine', and unholy shit what a title and a banger of a song it is because it really makes you go crazy before the grand climax with the final track 'Noesis' that closes the curtains as death swings its scythe to end all life. 

Although you can tell that Deus Mortem maintains a strong stylistic consistency in the songs throughout the entire Thanatos album, their songwriting still ended up being quite dynamic with the overall rich song structures that always have something interesting to offer along the way. Even though there isn't anything new or innovative on this album that people from certain musical backgrounds usually come looking for, you can tell that these guys took all the traditional black metal elements and pushed them to the limits to provide one hell of an output for an album worthy of its title, because it truly feels like an eight-track massacre constantly delivering death and mayhem. It’s hard these days to find a black metal album that keeps your attention constant all the way through, especially since most of them don’t feel very genuine or are just highly repetitive, yet Deus Mortem on the other hand keeps the edges of their songs sharp, and clean, without a second of losing their core strengths. It's a simple yet effective standard black metal approach with a quite mean attitude that obviously means serious business, and what more could you want from that? From time to time, Polish black metal has proven itself to sound and feel quite dangerous and violent, so naturally this album is a one fine addition to that great family tree so to speak. 

If you are looking for a very brutal and aggressive black metal with a pinch of the macabre and the occult, look no further than Thanatos by Deus Mortem. The output of this album is both a killer and a thriller, with its superb execution that just grinds and delivers all the way through, like a real death dealer that one would have hoped for. Be sure to check it out! 

Rating: 8.7 out of 10