Blood Incantation: Conquest of the Astral Void

Since the release of their 2016 debut, Denver’s BLOOD INCANTATION have become one of the most hyped bands in death metal – and not without good reason. The quartet released Starspawn to universal critical acclaim, catapulting to extreme metal’s spotlight and enjoying the touring clout and success that comes with it. And to the credit of the debut, the hype train never really slowed. All to often bands become the flavour of the month, billed as the next big thing, only to crash out weeks or months later as everyone moves onto something new. Starspawn just kept garnering attention and acclaim, leading to BLOOD INCANTATION signing with the prestigious Century Media Records for the sophomore album, Hidden History of the Human Race, out now. 

“It is surprising, in a way, that it’s maintained that status. When we were making Starspawn in the studio, there was a sort of electricity in the studio while we were making it. We were always telling ourselves ‘either it’s gonna just be a shot in the dark and no one’s gonna care, or maybe this is going to change our lives,’ we got that feeling while we were in the studio.” Reflects BLOOD INCANTATION founder and drummer Isaac Faulk. “Now with the new album, I think the expectations are very high. There’s people who think there’s no way this can be as good as Starspawn. We approached the new album with that in mind, we didn’t want to try to redo what we did because there’s no way we could make a Starspawn 2.”

Over the course of the decade, old-school sounding death metal has enjoyed an intense revival. Particularly in North America, a new wave of bands including TOMB MOLD, GATECREEPER and, of course, BLOOD INCANTATION have been taking the genre back to its roots, moving away from the hyper technical, overly polished sound that dominated death metal at the start of the 2010s.

“I would say around the early 2000s to 2010, it was a darker time, it was a bleak, barren time for metal. Most of the modern death metal at that time, to me, was either influenced by deathcore or trying to sound like NECROPHAGIST. When Paul [Riedl, guitars & vocals] met we would share bands… We both loved MORBID ANGEL. We both loved DEATH. But I didn’t feel like I was into most other death metal… But I think that was because most of the modern death metal at that time, around 2011, just wasn’t very good.” Faulk reminisces to the origins of BLOOD INCANTATION‘s sound and the old-school death metal revival. “I think maybe part of this old school death metal revival is that everyone was feeling like that, at least in the underground metal scene. There were tonnes of bands that were doing music in that style, like DEAD CONGREGATION, or just bands that were playing actual death metal before this resurgence happened, but that wasn’t really what was in the magazines. I think a lot of people who were in the the underground metal were feeling that same way and so once there were enough bands that were coming out and playing music like that, people though ‘Oh wow, actually I do love death metal!'”

BLOOD INCANTATION hit at the perfect time in the new wave of old-school death metal. By the time they came to release Starspawn, the movement was already gaining traction, and the Denver outfit’s atmospheric, unsettling brand of cosmic brutality fit perfectly into the soundscape, while offering something unique. The band’s signature sound comes from a unified concept, something that was hinted at on Starspawn, but is much more overt on Hidden History of the Human Race.

“In a way, it kind of is a concept album because every song is based on a book; each song title comes either from a book title or a chapter title in a book. They are all books that detail the premise of BLOOD INCANTATION more succinctly than Starspawn, which was a bit more vague. Paul wanted to approach our premise in a much more specific way, utilising not just what people might consider as conspiracies but also a lot more metaphysical and spiritual stuff that we’re into.” Faulk begins, detailing the concept behind both the band and the new record. “The last title comes from a Kahlil Gibran book – he was a poet who was all about the spiritual self. But then you have The Giza Power Plant and Slave Species of the Gods which are both about the ancient past being not what we believe it to be, and the human race maybe having some influence from extraterrestrials. BLOOD INCANTATION has always been about that. We don’t consider ourselves a science-fiction band. We wanted to up the ante not just with the music but also with the content to give it a more intense vibe.”

Conceptually, both BLOOD INCANTATION and a band and Hidden History of the Human Race are fascinating. Musically, somehow, the band have managed to capture the cosmic awakening theme, taking the listener on a journey with the music just as much, if not more so, as the lyrics. Coupled with the classic Bruce Pennington painting as the artwork, the concept is stronger than ever. BLOOD INCANTATION have proven without a doubt they are more than a one hit wonder, and will no doubt use Hidden History of the Human Race as a springboard for their conquest of the death metal scene at large.

Hidden History Of The Human Race is out now via Century Media Records.

Like BLOOD INCANTATION on Facebook.