It’s more than a bit apropos that the strangely sensual slab of exquisitely brutal old school black metal courtesy Cauldron Burial swoops in from seemingly out of nowhere to shock the goddamn hell straight out of we, its unsuspecting prey.
After all, the duo’s mastermind Alucarda Bellows — AKA Vanessa Alucarda — is as close to underground horror metal royalty as they come, having previously flayed our hearts and eardrums via shudder-inducing projects such as Surgikill, Vaultwraith, Wooden Stake, Howling, Skeletal Spectre, Scaremaker, and more. Which is to say, she knows her way around the process of building harrowing aural atmospheres and can construct a jump scare to beat the band (literally to death).
Don’t take our word for it, though: Check out a stream of an extremely extreme track from Amanti d’oltretomba below as well as the exclusive track by track Bellows was kind enough to send along. Then go purchase the record at Bandcamp for the low, low price of $6.66. For info on the imminent CD release visit HexeCoven Records.
“The title of the album translates into ‘lovers beyond the grave,” Bellows explains. “Obviously necrophilia is a running theme with the band and the title perfectly matches the cover art by Mortuus which I had before I started writing the album. The album is told through a character I channeled who is the lady on the cover I’ve named Moira.”
1. “Fetch the Tools of Torture”
Very much inspired by nunsploitation flicks, in particular Jess Franco’s Love Letters of a Portuguese Nun. Moira, who is a nun, gets off on torturing others and wants to be a God-like being over her victims leading into…
2. “Spewing Unholy Litanies”
Moira actually succeeds in summoning an evil being who she sees as the Devil.
3. “Condemned to the Void”
This song is total Lair of the White Worm worship. I even approached the lyrics in a way to somewhat fit Moira’s storyline. I had to have some Lovecraft inspired work on here as I did with the first album.
4. “Erotik Rites of Lady Necro”
An obvious nod to the Nekromantik films, which will always be an inspiration for this band, but I made it Moira’s by adding she not only likes to fuck the dead but discovers she likes to eat them too, and she feels like she conquers life and death by committing these acts. So I’m throwing in some cannibalism with the necrophilia.
5. “La Novia de Belial”
Moira’s fantasies are now moving on to her, in her twisted mind, marries herself to this evil she believes to have summoned. But it could also be said it’s not a manifestation but just the evil inside her she hallucinates as a manifestation.
6. “Necrotic Overture” (Instrumental)
I wrote this musical piece when I was 18 or 19 and years later it was supposed to open the second full-length album from my black metal band WOLFHOLLOW but the band broke up so I was excited to finally use it. It’s a nice continuation in a way of the previous song (I incorporated similar parts in each song) and before it rips into…
7. “Angel of the Bottomless Pit”
Moira wants the evil out of her, exorcising and trying to “miscarry” her faith but this evil finally manifests and impregnates her and she births a vile dark womb spawn. This is another song on the album inspired by Love Letters of a Portuguese Nun.
8. “Spellbound by Obscene Lust”
Moira returns to her convent to pray for forgiveness and she unknowingly seduces the priest who she hallucinates as Christ and the two enjoy lust and ecstasy together sinning against God.
9. “Exorcismo Perversa”
The sample at the beginning of this song is from the German movie Magdalena Possessed by the Devil. It was fitting with the lyrics/story which was actually inspired by Jess Franco’s Exorcism. It continues the story with the priest, by fucking Moira who is plagued by evil, begins to crave torture, murder and perversion. He tries exorcising Moira but the pain from it only pleasures her.
10. “Pleasures of the Forked Tongue”
This jumps ahead a bit in the story; Moira’s dark womb spawn has grown up in the convent and she has always lusted over Satan and has the natural “powers”, if you will, to make him come to her and Moira senses this evil. This aspect of the story is inspired by Ring of Darkness (AKA Satan’s Wife).
