Listen: Summoning the Lich Drop Debut Record United in Chaos
At long last the day is finally upon us: Summoning the Lich have dropped their debut album, United in Chaos. This is great, because not only does the record absolutely fucking slay, but also because I am starting to run out of creative ways to hype it up.
For about a year, Summoning the Lich have left me the colossal burden of keeping my mouth shut about what is easily one of the best records of 2021. If you haven’t already seen me gushing about this band here and here, Summoning the Lich are a four-piece melodic death metal act hailing from St. Louis, Missouri. If you ever listened to Substructure, then you’re already familiar with vocalist D.J. Bruno.
If I were incapable of forming an original opinion, then I would just take a giant bite of burrito, write off Summoning the Lich as The Black Dahlia Murder 2.0, and call it a day. However, that’s the kind of lazy, shitty take you’ll hear in reviews from people who didn’t actually listen to the record more than once. There are obvious similarities, but there is plenty at work here beyond just string skipping and tremolos with high screams. The Lich brand of melo-death throws in a few beer-slamming chugs and gives a little bit more room to breathe than most similar bands do. Take “Cult of the Ophidian” for example: a smooth intro, quick chugs in the middle and then right back to carving up your body for ritual sacrifice. That being said, any fan of TDBM, Through The Eyes of the Dead, Darkest Hour or Amon Amarth will be right at home here.
Like I said, I’ve been hyped about this record dropping for over a year now. I could tell you it’s killer because it’s twelve tracks rather than just ten, or that there are no weak points on the album, or that each time you think a song might get repetitive, Summoning the Lich throw another dash of spice on top and keep you right on the train to Flavortown. (Well, audio Flavortown at least. It’s still a pretty nice place.) I could ramble for another page or so with compliments, but the reality is that there’s only one way for you to find out, and that’s to listen.
Fortunately for you, you can listen to Summoning the Lich on just about every music/streaming platform out there, and also directly below this paragraph. Tread lightly though — one listen and you’ll find yourself with an unhallowed thirst for death metal dark magic and before you know it, you’ll be forwarding them your paychecks for merch bundles (don’t worry, I asked and they’re cool with it). Summoning the Lich are the most exciting new metal act out there, and if United in Chaos is any indication of what’s to come, then we all have many years of evil to look forward to.
United in Chaos drops today via Prosthetic Records. You can listen below and order here.
