Welcome to Metal Lair’s Seven Deadly Songs weekly feature where we curate music from the past and the present for your listening pleasure. This week we are featuring Season of Mist artists
CRYPTOPSY – The Book Of Suffering – Tome II
Cryptopsy revitalized their sound with the mid-2010s EPs, marking a resurgence that many fans trace back to The Book of Suffering: Tome I. The EP delivers brutal, technical death metal, with tracks like “Detritus (The One They Kept)” showcasing manic riffs, blast beats, and crushing breakdowns. Adding a dark narrative twist, the band explores chilling tales of phobophiles and grotesque suffering, including a harrowing true story from a Greyhound bus trip. Originally self-released in 2015 and now reissued on CD, Tome I is finally accessible again for fans to endure.
Buy The Book of Suffering: Tome I
MÖRK GRYNING – Fasornas Tid
MÖRK GRYNING has long embodied the raw spirit of Swedish black metal. Their new album, Fasornas Tid, is a relentless exploration of the human psyche, blending melodic black metal with death metal aggression. Fasornas Tid showcase the band’s ability to merge fury with haunting harmonies. Recorded by Sverker Widgren at Wing Studios, the album dives into themes of inner conflict and good versus evil. Fasornas Tid captures the essence of their earlier sound while embracing a modern, dystopian edge.
THE GREAT OLD ONES- Kadath
THE GREAT OLD ONES weave horror into black metal with their latest album Kadath, inspired by H.P. Lovecraft. The album follows Randolph Carter’s nightmarish journey through the Dreamlands. With intense, haunting melodies and expert production by Francis Caste, Kadath captures the eerie blend of beauty and terror that defines Lovecraft’s mythos, cementing the band’s place as masters of Lovecraftian sound.
VESTIGE – Janis
VESTIGE emerged from Théodore Rondeau’s personal struggles and experiences. Their debut album, Janis, blends atmospheric shoegaze, intense melodies, and raw emotion to create a powerful narrative. The album weaves despair and hope into a cathartic experience, inviting listeners to confront and transform their fears. With Rondeau on vocals, Pierre-André Krauzer on bass, Quentin Regnault on drums, and Thomas Petit on guitar, VESTIGE’s lineup delivers a dynamic, modern metal sound that promises to leave a lasting mark on the scene. Janis is not just an album but a musical journey that connects deeply with the soul.
RETROMORPHOSIS – Psalmus Mortis
Rising from the ashes, Retromorphosis emerges as a monstrous new evolution in technical death metal. Spearheaded by guitarist Jonas Bryssling, the project reunites SoP veterans Dennis Röndum and Erlend Caspersen, alongside Christian Muenzner (ex-Obscura, Necrophagist) and KC Howard (ex-Decrepit Birth).
Their debut album, Psalmus Mortis, delivers a ferocious blend of blistering riffs, surgical precision, and cosmic dread. Tracks like “Vanished” channel SoP’s signature chaos with crushing grooves, while “The Tree” adds dystopian sci-fi textures and searing solos. The title track unleashes relentless blasts, jaw-dropping bass lines, and inhuman solos—a testament to the band’s rebirth.
With Psalmus Mortis, Retromorphosis cements their place as tech-death’s next evolutionary step.
DEFEATED SANITY – Chronicles of Lunacy
For nearly three decades, Defeated Sanity has been celebrated for blending old-school death metal brutality with jazzy technicality and classical precision. But with their seventh album, Chronicles of Lunacy, the focus shifts from mind-bending complexity to sheer neck-snapping ferocity.
Lead single “The Odour of Sanctity” sees drummer and founding member Lille Gruber constantly shifting tempos, while vocalist Josh Welshman delivers guttural roars against bassist Jacob Schmidt’s crushing low-end. Guitarist Vaughn Stoffey adds a dissonant, razor-sharp edge, especially on the blistering “Accelerate the Rot,” the band’s fastest track to date.
Recorded with producer Colin Marston, Chronicles of Lunacy harks back to the raw power of Psalms of the Moribund, exploring how warped thinking corrupts the mind. With this album, Defeated Sanity proves once again that their brutality is unmatched.
Purchase Chronicles of Lunacy Here
SAOR – Amidst The Ruins
Emerging from Scotland’s misty highlands, SAOR weaves black metal ferocity with Celtic folk melodies to revive the spirit of Caledonia. Their latest album, Amidst the Ruins, bridges history and nature, telling tales of Scotland’s past through powerful, atmospheric compositions. Tracks like “Glen of Sorrow,” inspired by the Massacre of Glencoe, and “The Sylvan Embrace,” featuring Jo Quail, evoke the country’s rich heritage and timeless landscapes. With sweeping melodies and haunting narratives, SAOR invites listeners to journey through glens and hills steeped in strength, sorrow, and renewal.
Purchase Amidst The Ruins Here
We hope you’ve enjoyed exploring our content as much as we’ve enjoyed bringing it to you. The team at Metal Lair extends our deepest gratitude to each and every one of you for stopping by, sharing in our passion, and supporting the incredible artists who make this community so vibrant. Your unwavering support fuels everything we do, and we can’t wait to continue celebrating the music that brings us all together. Thank you for being a part of the Metal Lair family!
