Review by Michael on January 1, 2023.

Spanish black metal pioneers Ouija had a nice Christmas present for every dark soul this year – their new album Fathomless Hysteros out via Negra Nit Distro. Although the band has existed since 1995 (with some break-ups) they only have three full-length albums in their biography. Not too many, so let's see what Santa Clause has put under the Christmas tree.

Starting with the title track the listener gets some orthodox black metal tunes right from the start. Cold riffing with a lot of tremolo picking, pummeling and thunderous drums and some harsh and hateful vocals are the main ingredients for the song. 'Bestia Negra' is an absolute black metal killer song with hypnotic drumming and again very contemptuous vocals spit out by vocalist Midgard. His harsh, half-whispered voice has a very mystifying and sinister effect on the listener (at least this is my impression). So this effect comes to fruition especially in the next song which is a very slow and atmospheric piece that lives from the simple structures and the vocals. The title 'I See You Without Eyes' brings to mind this demonic monster with the eyes in its palms in the fantastic movie Pan's Labyrinth by Guillermo del Toro. With 'Adversary' the band has an almost heavy metal song in their repertoire because even though it starts with typical minor black metal tunes the guitar solos soon turn out to be more classic metal than everything else here. Also the spoken words are quite unusual for the album and so this song becomes the best and most interesting track on Fathomless Hysteros because of its diversity and the tension sheet that it creates.

With their third album Ouija didn't create anything groundbreaking or new in the black metal scene and I can only guess that it was never their intention. Nevertheless they have created a very solid and entertaining old-school black metal album that doesn't need to hide from other black metal releases of 2022. Although the production may be a little bit more saturated and balanced here and there I would recommend this piece of dark art to every black metal maniac.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10 Bad Santas

Review by Alex Grindor on December 22, 2025.

Mexican label Chaos Records has gathered 4 Chilean entities from the extreme spectrum into a split release of complete darkness. Evoking The Abominations features the darksome music made by Sepulcrum, Blood Oath, Nigromancia, and Phantom, all from diverse corners of the country, yet united with a seamless vision in the creation of this record.

Sepulcrum (from Puerto Montt) opens the gates of the beyond with the mighty & thrashing 'Bestial Incarnation', which sets the tone for the entire release from there on. An energizing old-school sound that boasts atmosphere. Their second track, 'Through Your Skin', continues the relentless assault without mercy upon your ears.
Blood Oath (from Concepcion) opens with a bit more doom and atmosphere than their compatriots, but they nonetheless know how to shift their attack into a blazing frenzy in mere seconds. Their tracks, 'Chants Of The Blackened Dawn' and 'Sigils Of Doom', show a well-balanced mix of dirge-like atmosphere and ravaging brutality.
Nigromancia (from Santiago) showcases an excellent mix of death/thrash metal a la old-school, with piercing precision and brutality. Their tracks, 'Perverted Desires' and 'Trapped In A Coffin' showcase excellent compositions and some amazing solos.
Last but not least, we have Phantom (from Valparaiso), which is the most experimental band of the four. Their tracks 'Proclamacion Embrionaria' and 'Incorporeo Soy' feature twisting riffs and rhythms that showcase a band in constant evolution. If you like your death metal with some technical twist, then they will surely quench your thirst.

Production-wise, there is very little to note. All bands sound perfectly fine, and the mixing of the whole record has a homogenous sound, while making every band have its own independent sound. The instrumentation sounds really well mixed, and the bass has quite the prominence across the entire record (Nigromancia & Blood Oath having the best
in my opinion). My only complaint would be the vocal variety, in that there is little. Many of the vocals sound almost the same, Phantom being the exception, but it may be due to them being the only band with vocals in Spanish. Whatever the case, it is a minor issue that does not detract too much from the whole split album.

Overall, Evoking The Abominations is a really well-put split album that serves the purpose of showcasing what's new in Chile, as well as what the bands in question are working on. There is a bit of variety for death metal fans here that will no doubt enjoy this record. From slightly complex to straight-in-your-face, this is a great split put together by Chaos Records, and we can only hope that the future for all the bands involved brings great things for them.

Rating: 8.8 out of 10