Nexhymn - Black Horizon EP

Colorado, US based death metal band Nexhymn are relatively new if their current form. They started plying their death metal trade in 1997 and went by the name of Throat Culture, before morphing into Throcult in 1999 (which counted an ex-member of Vale of Pnath amongst it's ranks). Throcult terrorised the US for a further ten years before changing their name again to Nexhymn. Nexhymn's debut EP Black Horizon was self-released in 2012 and to date is their only recorded output.  There was due to be new material at the back end of last year, but it seems the band have been going though more line-up changes.

Tracklist:-

1. Decaying Monument
2. Undetermined Supplication
3. Repacious Tempest
4. Black Horizon
5. Exquisite Plague
6. Death Emotion

The most immediate thing that hits you when Decaying Monument begins are the deep, bellowing vocals of vocalist Holly Wedel. They are blood-curdling to the core. The instrumentation behind is equally as crazy too, with the guitars and drums holding a furious pace throughout. There are some intricate riffs hidden behind the battery and there’s plenty of technicality. Nexhymn seem very focused straight from the off. They play their brand of death metal with minimal outside influences and each member uses their musical experience to keep things tight.

This is definitely for the purists who appreciate death metal for it’s purity and extremity. Undetermined Supplication is your archetypal tech-death song, with some absolutely destructive double-bass and riffs that change pace and time-signature at the drop of the hat. It seems that the modern side of their sound takes over more during this song. Nexhymn switch back into a more old-school stance with Rapacious Tempest, with swathes of black metal-like ambience from the guitars. It’s relentless throughout and even with the brief flourishes of melody, the band’s constant barrage of blastbeats never lets up.

From here on in, Nexhymn turn the screw even more. The title track ratchets up the pace of Nexhymn’s attack, condensing their songwriting into little over thee-minutes of chaos. There are some symphonic flashes and it’s the first song that features a solo of sorts. Exquisite Plague follows immediately after in much the same vein. Nexhymn end proceedings with Death Emotion, which acts as more of an instrumental outro than a full song, but it does show off their musical prowess once more.

Overall, Nexhymn are a very solid band with experience in their ranks. They offer something for the hardened death metal fan but also have enough approachability to appeal to fans of other extreme metal and even for those graduating from melodic metal and the mainstream. This is wholesome, honest death metal.

You can stream and purchase Black Horizon digitally here - 



Nexhymn Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Nexhymn