PROFANATICA
PROFANATICA “Crux Simplex”
By Dr. Abner Mality
I will give credit where it is due, PROFANATICA were one of the very first who did bestial, super-primitive death metal, a style which has taken off like wild fire in the last couple of years. Along with closely affiliated band INCANTATION, they were doing it before just about anybody in the States. And they took Satanic blasphemy to a heretofore unreached level. That’s a pretty tired trope these days and there are times when PROFANATICA look rather clownish, even though they don’t have the knowing wink and a nod that, say, NUNSLAUGHTER has.
“Crux Simplex” is the latest belch of sulfurous impiety from the band and displays both their strengths and weaknesses. One thing this sucker is, is HEAVY. A few ambient moments at the beginning and ending, but what’s inbetween is pure death metal. The purely fast and blasting stuff like “The First Fall” and “Meeting Of A Whore” sounds pretty generic and very much by the (evil) book. In fact, there’s nothing here that hasn’t been done before many times. But when this band locks into a more doom-paced or mid-paced groove, they can’t be denied. “Compelled By Romans”, “Division of Robes” and most of “The Third Fall” just flat-out crush in these moments and there’s a resemblance to pure Stockholm style death metal in that raw chainsaw guitar sound.
If you love the Satanic stuff, add a couple of points. They sure don’t overthink it or intellectualize it with song titles like “Wipe The Fucking Face of Jesus” and “Cunts of Jerusalem”. Kind of on the silly side for me, but they’ve been doing it for so long, I’ll cut them some slack.