INTRODUCING: Schammasch
What do you get when you mix ritualistic occultism with black metal, throw in a little inaudible chanting, and a lethal dose of controlled chaos? You get celestial beings SCHAMMASCH. With the release of their third and latest album Triangle just last year, the Swiss extreme metal quartet have redefined the genre as we know it, infusing an already raw and brutish subgenre with an unsettling atmosphere of quiet dread.
All too often have we seen relatively new bands stumble around in search of their own style, desperately experimenting, hoping to find that one key characteristic that’ll set them apart from everyone else. This is absolutely not the case for SCHAMMASCH. Since forming in 2009, then with the release of the brooding, occult paragon of an album that is Sic Lvceat Lvx (2010, Black Tower Productions) the band have hit the nail on the head, and they’ve kept hammering with no sign of stopping.
From the mesmeric drum beats of Satori, to the disquieting chanting of Metanoia, to the anguish-inducing riffs of Father’s Breath it’s clear that this dark, menacing and contemplative noise, wasn’t made for the blast beat inclined, but for those of us tired of the wacky Satan aesthetic plaguing a lot of black metal today. SCHAMMASCH have consistently demonstrated that the art of self-reflection is far more terrifying than any goat-sacrificing circus out there. Having said all of that, if you’re looking for a blastbeat or two, some can be found, especially in their second album Contradiction (2014, Prosthetic Records) and in the first part of Triangle. Indeed, SCHAMMASCH’s very real occultism bleeds out of every song, from every album, and that is what makes them an apex of ominousness.
Having recently toured with the likes of INQUISITION, ROTTING CHIRST and MYSTIFIER, SCHAMMASCH aren’t too hard to come by. If presented with the opportunity, they’re a journey into the mystic that shouldn’t be passed up. Unfortunately, although the quartet have quite the schedule lined up for 2017 (including supporting MOONSPELL) the only chance to hear Triangle in full would be at Roadburn 2017 this spring in the Netherlands. For the love all that is transcendent, don’t miss out!