Hideous Divinity - Unextinct

Horror movie focus seems to be the thing for metal bands and the first quarter of 2024. Aborted presented their ferocious “Vault of Horrors” earlier in March which had every track focus on a different horror film in typical evolving Aborted fashion, and now we have another tribute to horror cinematography from Italy’s Death Metal relatively not-hyped Hideous Divinity. While they teased us with the Alien themed EP back in 2021, sadly it seems the band did not decide to expand on that (or surprise us with a Predator themed album). Instead- judging from the artwork of the album cover for “Unextinct”- we are given some sort of story surrounding the Demeter, or Dracula, for that matter. Now, Dracula has been tackled overtly by many metal bands over the years, but the thing that Hideous Divinity does so beautifully with their work is they never really tackle the subject head on, but rather with cryptic titles and subtle hints in the lyrics. My first taste of these guys was with “Adveniens” which focused on Cronenberg’s Videodrome (don’t quote me on that). The album was HEAVY, yet stylish and patterned after the sound of earlier Nile. As Hideous Divinity have progressed over the years, we’ve seen them get rooted in their sound ranging similar to the likes of Nile all the way to earlier Decapitated to Devangelic, but something about these guys always stand out.

“Unextinct” stands out as well for the band. Going for more of a cinematic feel (but not really delving into the symphonic), there are a lot more instrumental tracks on this album and moodier pieces, but the music still hits hard. Pretty much picking up in style where they left us with the EP, the dramatic sweeping ‘Dust Settles on Humanity’ draws listeners in before jumping into ‘The Numinous One.’ Vocalist Enrico Lorenzo roars and bellows with sheer diverse ferocity alongside the stop and go pace of the guitars from Enrico Schettino whose former Hour of Penance influence can be heard here. The rumbling bass from Stefano Franceschini is also present which is nice, and the addition of drummer Edoardo Di Santo is a welcome thunder which suits the dramatic passages. Compared to Hideous Divinity’s earlier work, tracks like this and also ‘Atto Quarto…’ show their maturation and also trying to avoid just being the loudest, hardest hitting thing all the time. It is the slower parts, be it the melodic guitar moments halfway through or the almost doom laden passages that help separate these guys from their compatriots, and “Unextinct” continues to try to shape that trend. Rather than go for the eastern sounding Nile style as those guys do it well enough already, Hideous just aim for crushing power but in a way that doesn’t leave one with a headache or feel like the blast beats are endless. For those who like the heavier side with just sheer stop and go technicality but not quite Archspire insane, ‘Against the Sovereignty…’ is a good listen.

The band also opts for more lengthier tracks here, making ‘Atto Quarto…’ and ‘Leben Ohne Feuer’ some of their longest works to date. Trying to keep the music engaging, they don’t really add in any filler but just certain sections that flow well with the cinematic side of the music as well as the Death Metal side. ‘Atto…’ uses a somber intro before getting into the chugs, but as one listens through they can hear the guitar solos adding more melody while the drums pound hard, and even during the slower, darker interludes it helps build the tension before going back to the more brutal technical side along with the vocals snarling and growling about in discernible fashion. The closing ‘Leben…’ is also moody in its approach, sounding a bit more like the way Nile would close a album- grandiose- but here Hideous Divinity mixes things up a bit by adding in clean vocals too a bit for dramatic effect. Some might feel the track carries on a bit too much like the other one, but it works well for the album and finishes it on a strong note (this time no cover songs to grace us), and again showcases Hideous Divinity pushing their limits. In contrast to that, as said before, they also do include a few more interludes than normal to change things up and add breaks between the songs. Some like the introduction and ‘Hair, Dirt, Mud’ are just slower, guitar driven pieces, but ‘Der Velorene Sohn’ is the only really ‘horror cinematic’ mood piece with its creepy synth approach. While it doesn’t really fit the whole Dracula style based upon the story and mood of the album, it would have worked beautifully on the Videodrome “Adveniens.”

Despite some changes to keep things interesting, fans will be very pleased with the result that is “Unextinct.” It is still Hideous Divinity to the core, just fleshed out more and better with more ‘majestic’ injected, but not falling into trying to go the majestic route of Nile. Still closer to Devangelic but unique in their approach to groove, melody, and technicality, many will find this album slightly restrained compared to earlier works, but more mature and willing to stick with the head rather than be passed off as a one time listen. New fans will find this a great place to start as well as it showcases some of Hideous’ better tracks to date, both short and long. While some might be saddened there is not cover track, it is nice to see a full album dedicated to the band’s own music. Where they will jump to next, who knows. Maybe Hellraiser based upon some of the artwork they’ve done on their band shirts….?

5 / 5 STARS