Review by Daniel for Gnaw Their Tongues - Reeking Pained and Shuddering (2007)
I think it’s fair to say that many outsiders can’t comprehend why fans of extreme metal spend their time searching for releases that essentially take them further & further into the depths of Hell. There are those release that do it in a subtle way by masking some of the intent through the use of melody & more accessible song structures of course. But then there are those that bask in & celebrate to sheer darkness & evil by steering as far away from anything your average music fan could understand as possible & in doing so ensure that they remain as underground as possible. Well, with his third full-length album Surinamese producer Gnaw Their Tongues didn’t only ensure that he’ll stay well within the unholy confines of the underground but he created an entire new level of musical horror. In fact, “Reeking Pained & Shuddering” may just be the perfect musical representation of Hell itself as I think it may just be the most evil piece of musical art I’ve ever encountered.
In my recent review of Gnaw Their Tongues’ 2018 album “Genocidal Majesty” I questioned the validity of it’s links to metal, despite the inherent darkness & power it possesses within it’s inhuman Power Electronics sound. I won’t be doing the same with “Reeking Pained & Shuddering” however as the glory of extreme metal runs thick in its veins & is the very core of its atmosphere. It certainly fits the criteria for Black Noise qualification as it harnesses both genres equally but also draws upon Drone Metal & Black Ambient to give it a more rounded position with which to spread its message of violence & torture. The riffs here are doomy as fuck while Maurice de Jong’s screaming vocals are as over the top & psychotic as you’ll ever find, even within the realms of black metal. Both represent sensational additions to the Black Noise sound & give the album additional layers. So too do the beautiful gothic ambient accompaniments which further compliment the horrors the listener is witnessing by adding a cinematic quality.
The black metal component is strongest on the record’s most popular song “Nihilisim; Tied Up & Burning” but I tend to find that track to be the least impressive of the six included with its programmed blast beats & more traditional black metal guitar work sounding a little too run of the mill to make the same impact as the other material. The wonderfully titled opener “Blood Spills Out Of Everything I Touch” kicks things off in transcendent fashion & is followed by the very solid & equally well named “Utter Futility of Creation” but it’s the second half of the album that sees Gnawing Their Tongues truly reaching the peak of his blasphemic powers. In fact, I’d suggest that I’ve never heard a more perfect side of metal in my life with the deep dark ambient of “The Evening Wolves” creating an imposing atmosphere for black noise masterpiece “Destroying Is Creating” & the ten minute album highlight “Transition” to capitalize on in the most emphatic fashion.
“Reeking Pained & Shuddering” is a visceral & cerebral experience to say the least & is certainly not for the faint-hearted. It’s audience will be limited even within the extreme metal scene as it simply doesn’t allow for any form of hope or light at the end of the tunnel. It presents the world as the most harsh, barren & generally disgusting place & utilizes the most sickening serial killer associated vocal samples on Earth to drive its point home. There will certainly be times when I won’t feel up to listening to a record like this as it’s simply that depressive. But when I feel the urge to get into nastier territory I’m not sure I’ll find a more blatant example of hatred in music.
For fans of Abruptum, La Torture des ténèbres & Nahvalr.