ENSANGUINATE – Death Saturnalia

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7.0

• Bands:
  ENSBLOOD
• Duration: 00:42:04
• Available from: 02/06/2026
• Label:

• Soulseller Records

Streaming not yet available

There is something inevitable, almost cyclical, in the evolution undertaken by Ensanguinate with “Death Saturnalia”. After a chapter like “Eldritch Anatomy”, which at times already hinted at a desire to broaden the field beyond the most immediate black-death metal urgency, the Slovenian quartet now chooses to insist on some of those openings, making them in certain episodes the fulcrum of their language. The foundations remain firmly anchored to an imaginary Swedish black-death metal, but the approach at times becomes more relaxed, less frontal, inclined towards a vague and creeping epicness which also develops through midtempos full of tension, rather than through the continuous assault.

This new work, in short, elaborates and refines that concept by openly looking at a group of bands that, about ten years ago, contributed to redefining some of the expressive boundaries of the genre: Tribulation, Chapel Of Disease, Ketzer, Venenum, Slaegt… the names are now many. The style remains admittedly Mephistophelian, but here and there it is enriched by a more marked use of atmosphere, by inserts that touch on progressive ambitions and by occasional, vague, seventies suggestions, all wrapped up in a production with a vintage flavor that favors warmth and depth over the compression of a certain extremism of today.

It's true, this is a type of evolution that is now familiar, almost a cliché, also because many of the groups mentioned no longer occupy the center of the scene or have in the meantime changed their skin further. Despite this, Ensanguinate demonstrate that they know how to handle this grammar with a certain skill, especially when the writing becomes more complex. Tracks such as “On Wings of Bone”, “Savage Hunger Far Beyond” or “Gloaming” represent the most successful moments of the album: here flavorful broadsides Watainian they coexist with more cryptic and ambiguous passages, following formulas that have already demonstrated their effectiveness in recent years.

That the quartet chooses to move along these coordinates is neither surprising nor disturbing: death-black of this type, if played with criteria, remains an engaging expressive form, capable of balancing impact and suggestion. However, when the riffs fail to impose themselves with great personality, a sensation of déjà-vu emerges that is difficult to ignore, as if “Death Saturnalia”, although animated by good intentions, arrived with a certain delay on a topic already widely explored.

Overall, however, listening flows without any particular failures: the album is compact, coherent, and conveys considerable care for every aspect of its packaging. It comes naturally to think that many of these songs could find an even more effective performance in a live setting, as often happens with other similar groups – from Cloak to 'our' Hierophant – for which the physical impact completes and elevates what was built in the studio. “Death Saturnalia” therefore turns out to be a solid work and recommended for those who follow this specific trend of extreme metal with interest, without expecting revolutions, but appreciating a well-executed proposal that is aware of its means.