Tomb Mold - Manor of Infinite Forms

 Albums I like a lot: Part I

(Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on August 20th 2021) 

Ever since I started writing these reviews for the Metal Archives, I’ve tried primarily covering releases with few, if any reviews. It might be a somewhat fruitless errand, but I’ve found it more productive than writing about albums that have multiple reviews to their name already. But seeing as I’m inching ever so closely to 50 reviews, I decided to tackle albums that have left a mark on me during my years listening to metal music, whether that be emotional or expanding my horizons.

"Riddle me this: what do you get when you combine the cavernous pummelling of Incantation with the strange melody and gloom of Finnish death metal? The answer is Tomb Mold. The band has been kicking around since 2016, and has since become one of the leading forces in the caverndeath scene along with fellow label mates Witch Vomit. Their 2018 outing Manor of Infinite Forms, while not groundbreaking, was my gateway towards this particular style, which has since become my favourite sound in all of metal and is an album I revisit to this day.
Every aspect of this album is executed perfectly. From the subterranean feel of the music to the riffing and playing, it all coalesces into this amazingly brutal and dense 40 minute listen that is all killer and no filler. The band checks every box on what makes such releases worth listening to. Fast and erratic riffing being offset by doomy dirges and crushing mid-tempo slugfests, a vocal performance that’d make Craig Pillard blush, and drumming that is adventurous without devolving into showing off. Every piece of the puzzle falls into place, resulting in this album being straight up flawless. I could wax poetic about every single track for multiple paragraphs on end, but that’d result in this review being far longer than it has any reason to be. From the heavy riffing of the title track, to the subtle melodic touches on the leads (“Abysswalker” is a definite standout on that front) and the doomy “Two Worlds Become One”, which bring to mind the sombre and otherworldly atmosphere of Finnish stalwarts like Convulse and Purtenance, everything is just perfect.

The production is also yet another reason as to why this album is as good as it is. The instruments have an appropriate amount of grime to them, without that entailing an incoherent sound where it’s hard to make things out. The guitars are crushing, the bass rattles underneath, serving as the rhythmic base of the band, and the drums are absolutely relentless, with every single hit being felt to its fullest extent. The mixing is also nothing short of immaculate, with everything being audible at all times, despite the density of the music.

The lyrics on this album were also one of the things that caught my attention. Seeing a band having lyrics centered around Dark Souls was quite a pleasant surprise, considering how it’s my favourite series. What makes them particularly notable for me is that, barring "Abysswalker", they don’t rely on using buzzwords that would make them seem as “hey guys we play the games”, but have actual thought put into them. The other tracks are much more discreet about the influence they’ve drawn from the series, such as "Gored Embrace (Confronting Biodegradation)" being a reference to the process of going hollow. Max Klebanoff’s cavernous growl adds an otherworldly touch to the proceedings, with his performance being what caused me to set off in search of more bands that played in this style. His drumming is also another one of the album’s draws, since it doesn’t just hang in the back and keep time but actually pushes the tracks forward. Every fill and double bass run serves a purpose and isn’t an excuse for him to flaunt his admittedly impressive skills.

3 years, and many more caverndeath releases later, Manor of Infinite Forms is an album that has some noticeable influences that can be traced through the years. Yet despite that, it’s still an album that flawlessly embodies the tenets of the style, while still having an identity of its own, thus managing to stand out in a sea of similar releases in recent years. That, coupled with the fact that it was what truly kicked off my death metal addiction makes it one of my favourite albums of all time. Do yourselves a favour and listen to it if you haven’t done so already.

Highlights: Manor of Infinite Forms, Abysswalker, Gored Embrace (Confronting Biodegradation), Two Worlds Become One

Rating: 100% 

  

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