Review by Fernando on August 15, 2023.

Incantation at this point needs no introduction. They’re the forefathers of both death-doom and cavernous death metal, as well as a major influence to current underground death cult Dead Congregation and for the last three decades they have managed to remain a consistent and steadfast act, with guitarist and vocalist John McEntee being able to keep this blasphemous train going in spite of a rotating door policy lineup. And today we have their 13th studio album Unholy Deification.

Given that Incantation’s long standing in the world of death metal, it goes without saying that the band have pretty much perfected their sound and have consistently leaned into their strengths ever since John McEntee took over vocal duties, however, the band have also had some interesting deviations over the years. For Unholy Deification, the band have decided to continue the path of their previous record Sect Of Vile Divinities, as this album is a rager from beginning to end with songs that are perfect for the mosh pit, but without missing that trademark Incantation blasphemous crunch.

A major improvement is the production and while most Incantation diehards would argue the band sounded best in their early years with a gritty production and cavernous sound, after hearing this record, I don’t think having a cavernous production would’ve benefited it, at least not in practice. The band still play as heavy and intensely as ever and sonically this album is much heavier than the last record. They really lean into both the fast and the slow breakdowns to make the record as brutal as possible, quite possibly in response to how the last two records have followed more or less the same formula actually. The production really helps here, since being able to hear every instrument clearly adds much more heft into the songs, plus John McEntee also brought some really tasteful thrash-y riffs and licks that are reminiscent of his old band Revenant, and having his former band mate Henry Veggian really helps in that regard.

That being said, Incantation have been at it for so long that while the album is enjoyable and is a much stronger offering than the previous record, this is still an Incantation record, which isn’t bad at all, but if you know what you’re getting into, then nothing will truly surprise you, but regardless, this is still the band playing and performing at their peak and with some very welcomed guests like Jeff Becerra, the already mentioned Henry Veggian and Morbid Angel shredder Dan Vadim Von, and all alongside the band make the whole album a worthwhile experience.

Overall, Incantation still does what they do best, pummeling and blasphemous death metal, with another solid entry into their catalog, while I would like to see them experiment a bit more, if the formula ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Best tracks: ‘Homunculus (Spirit Made Flesh) IX’, ‘Invocation (Chthonic Merge) X’, ‘Altar (Unify in Carnage) V’

Rating: 8 out of 10

Review by Fran on February 25, 2026.

Paganus Doctrina’s side of this split, “Ascesis Al Uno Primigenio”, consists of one track that stops at the 22-minute mark. Lyrics are written in Spanish; they follow a satanic concept, but in terms of composition, there isn't really any theme repetition between the different movements presented, so they sound like different songs in a regular EP. Nothing wrong with that. The band's style is black metal with some thrash and death metal elements thrown in and keyboard interludes, mainly between movements and some choruses. The riffing style reminds me of Sarcófago, Mystifier, and some Hellhammer, maybe, but the tempo is very fast almost all the time. The quality of the recording is raw, but it lets you capture the idea and doesn't strip the music of its evil aura and heaviness, pure old school brilliance.

Songwriting is clever and efficient; tunes sound as tetric as intended, even the organ interludes. These passages are dark as well, but calm and let the album breathe, giving a nice contrast. Blast beat sections on the drums are totally relentless; their timing is the only improvement point the record has, though. Harmonic tension is something they do great with the guitars and keyboards; there are melodic guitar lines and some arpeggios, but all in all, riffs tend to be a high-pitched demonic frenzy, super fast and heavy. Vocals are at the front in the mix, and for good reason, they sound amazing. High-pitched but super deep and rotten at the same time, Attila would be proud. The volume of the drums is also kind of high on the mix, but you can still hear the riffs in the back, quintessential production of that era.

Regarding "Sinistrous Necromantika", Pseudostratiffied Epithelium’s side of this split, it leans completely towards death metal. Vocals are deeper and more guttural, riffing is more bassy overall. The production is harsher than on the other side, but it's still listenable, and you can notice the same mixing nuances of extreme metal recordings from that era. Another aspect it shares with the first side of the split is that every song is preceded by an intro track; for example, the opening is a nice acoustic arpeggio, and another intro track is just hellish screams/whispers, etc. There are some violin leads decorating 'Romantic Passions In Rigor Mortis' and 'Out Of The Grace Of God' that help to build a solemn aura without being overly melodic.

That being said, there’s a strong classical music influence in Mauricio Baltodano’s work, who is the band’s main songwriter. You know it's death metal when you hear it because of the presentation of the material, but you can’t really point out any other band (not even the death metal pioneers from the USA) as a direct influence in the riffing, and that is what I like the most about Pseudo: the originality and the freshness. Almost 30 years later, these songs are still strong and super interesting. Overall, the band’s sound is raging and obscure like Paganus Doctrina despite the difference in genres; they share a fervent passion you hardly see in modern-day bands. Pseudostratiffied Epithelium and Paganus Doctrina are Costa Rican extreme metal pillars, and this album came right after both bands released their first demos; you can say it was their most serious work to date. I’d recommend this album to anyone willing to better understand incipient extreme metal in Central America.

Rating: 8 out of 10