The ultimate incantation of Appalling‘s new album, Sacrilege (via Personal Records), lies in its savagery. From “Life In Prism” to “These People Need to Die,” the Virginians blast blackened death metal from Hell’s most hardened pits. There’s no remorse. No recourse. And certainly no restraint, as Appalling jackhammer angels of light with their insidious outlay.
Formed in Richmond in 2015, Appalling–featuring members of rock ‘n’ roll mavens US Bastards and groove lords Fire Faithful–have forged out of fire and brimstone three full-lengths, the latest of which is the inimitable Sacrilege. Certainly, netizens unfamiliar with the quartet’s infernal fusillade, this is the type of death metal blackened over by years of soot and hordes of sin. Somewhere at the vio-aggro crossroads of 1349, Angelcorpse, Vader, and Satyricon, Appalling have done God’s work. Full-lengths Secrets of the Adept (2017), Inverted Realm (2019), and now Sacrilege feel like they’ve been crafted out of the bone of Archangel Michael himself and imbued with the evilest blood. Exaggeration… perhaps, but spin through Sacrilege and imagine otherwise.
Say Appalling from the Fifth Circle: “The goal with this album was to up the ante… Christ. We wanted to produce a more brutal, complex album than the last. We believe that we have accomplished that. However, if Jesus is just alright with you, this album probably won’t be.”
Stomp on the corpses of angels. Instill chaos from order. Defoul the most vital of remains. Appalling’s Sacrilege has arrived as the fifth horseman.
