AlbumsNovember 29, 20119,611 views

Lord Mantis Spawning the Nephilim


Spawning the Nephilim
01. Push Tug Wipe 02. Unnatural Dwarfism 03. Lord Mantis 04. Spawning the Nephilim 05. Abducted by Aliens 06. Hit by a Bus 07. Zealot
2009 Seventh Rule Recordings
Our score 8

by Nick
8/25/2009

There's a fantastic trifecta to be found on Lord Mantis' debut full-length, Spawning the Nephilim. First and foremost, it's so satisfyingly heavy that its sludgy content aches for room to stretch its down-tuned limbs. Secondly, it skips the often plodding structures of sludge and doom and drives forward at fierce punk pace. And finally, Spawning the Nephilim simply sounds absolutely fucking evil. Wielding these three elements, Lord Mantis has put together one hell of a blackened sludge metal record, and takes the crown of Seventh Rule's darkest release to date. Dig a little deeper and the results aren't so surprising. With a current member of Indian and a former member of Nachtmystium, Lord Mantis' gruesome brand of top notch sludge was almost expected. "Push Tug Wipe" immediately sets the tone with gritty, fist-pumping riffs and layers of tortured screams. "Spawning the Nephilim" delivers a great helping of epic black metal progressions before locking into bleaker, Neurosis-inspired riffs. "Hit by a Bus" mixes the pummeling low end of Black Cobra with a wide range of agonizing howls. And it's all topped off with a layout that is a relic of the early days of envelope-pushing, highly offensive metal art work. This is the definition of extreme music. Desensitization is a fairly common side effect of being immersed in metal and hardcore for an extended period of time, but when a record like Spawning the Nephilim surfaces, even veteran listeners will remember the extraordinary feeling of being throttled by an impressively heavy and grating record. Fans of sludge and doom, black and death metal, and maybe even a few crusty hardcore dudes would be well-advised to give this Chicago band a thorough listen. Bottom Line: This record is heavy. This record is incredibly dark and twisted. And this record is relentlessly pummeling. These sound like obvious requirements for a metal release, but Lord Mantis' execution of them on Spawning the Nephilim will undoubtedly up the ante for future sludge records.

15 comments

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anonymous 8/25/2009 10:07:22 PM

again with the mindless namedropping. black cobra? lol, get the f*ck out. great band, great album, shit review.

anonymous 8/25/2009 11:58:21 PM

LORD MANt-ts

anonymous 8/26/2009 1:26:39 AM

doom cds are guaranteed high scores on lambgoat

Rob_ 8/26/2009 6:08:24 AM

Album took a few spins to get used to, but jesus f*ck, I can't stop listening to it now. Hit By a Bus is f*cking top-notch.

fur_beach_ 8/26/2009 12:20:37 PM

great f*ckin album. one of my favorites of the year.

Godfather_ 8/26/2009 5:01:15 PM

How many times are you going to say "fist pumping"

Nick_ 8/26/2009 6:54:11 PM

This review and Yob review were written roughly 4 months apart. The timing of the posts screwed up my terminology rationing.

Rob_ 8/26/2009 8:53:56 PM

FIST PUMP WIPE

anonymous 8/26/2009 9:06:14 PM

"Push Tug Wipe" was the first track we wrote as a three piece, with the intention of writing a record. The song lyrically is about black holes, inter-dimensional travel and mind control. "Unnatural Dwarfism" came together very quickly and it's one of our personal favorites. It was written after nights spent watching Lifetime specials on a Satanic cult in Virginia. The cult members would ritually kill themselves in the name of the devil. "Lord Mantis" is about an inhuman pedophile child kil

brokenhero_ 8/27/2009 11:28:07 AM

this band is playing on sept 18th in Indianapolis with Poor Bastards Revolt, Bulletwolf, and Sleepbringer for only 7 bucks. GO SEE THEM.

Godfather_ 8/27/2009 1:25:17 PM

f*ck off, you cancerous letch.

hotaction_ 8/28/2009 9:28:41 AM

um..i still dont really understand why people beat up reviews. and name dropping? i think its...pretty effective when describing bands or for giving people some frame of reference. and..im pretty sure thats how most people do it.

_ 8/29/2009 10:59:22 AM

simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking evil. simply sounds absolutely f*cking

devildriverYARG!_ 8/31/2009 1:17:14 PM

these guys cut each other up and f*ck in their own blood before and after their shows. that is so evil im coming blood! ohhhhh it hurts.

Vince Offer_ 9/1/2009 2:41:45 AM

This shit is almost as bad as some of the shit you'll have to clean with up with the ShamWow. It's like a shammy, it's like a towel, it's like a sponge. An ordinary towel doesn't work wet, the ShamWow works wet or dry. It's for the house, the boat, the car, the RV. ShamWow holds 20 times it weight in liquid! Why do you want to work twice as hard? It doesn't doesn't drip! It doesn't make a mess! Wring it out and wash it in the washing machine. Made in Germany, you know the Germans always make g