Montreal's old-school death metal collective Scorching Tomb have made quite a name for themselves in the primal, bare-bones style of metal. With reaching over twenty thousand monthly listeners, and having established artists featured on their albums, Scorching Tomb's "Ossuary" is another skull-shaped candle on the OSDM cake. Released in late October, 2025, the forceful quartet of Vincent, Phillipe, Miguel Lepage and Emile have two EPs under their belt, plus a gracious handful of singles to dine on. Drummer Emile Savard is also affiliated with Serpent Corpse, and ex-drummer for two other bands. Bassist Miguel Lepage has played for many other groups, too. Frankly, straight-up death metal isn't my go-to genre, as the songs seem to blend together easily, and the room for experimentality and uniqueness isn't usually explored, but I'll never say no to giving it another try - I mean, just look at how colorful that album cover is!

A couple singles were released ahead of Scorching Tomb's newest effort, the first, "Skullcrush," features Devin Swank of Sanguisugabogg. It's dreary, it's slow, and it is HEAVY. It's also in a bite-sized length, making the listen ever-so rewarding without wasting time. The second single was released about a month later in September, this time without extra vocal help. "Diminished to Ashes" starts off with glass breaking, manic screaming, and then returns back to the blast-beat barrage. It's way more technical, but the vocals are a bit more melodic, given I have no idea what they're saying in some parts. Probably for the better, though. The old-school feel is radiated effortlessly by these guys, and give stylistic hints to Cryptopsy and Suffocation. The drumming is endless, the riffs are slamming your ears, and some groovy, almost psychedelic sounds are wrung out of Phillipe Leblanc's guitar. After a twenty-second fade, Scorching Tomb has built up the momentum for their first full-length release.

The rest of the album carries the momentum, too. The opener "Stalagmite Impalement," (which is a badass song title), brings back the satisfying blast-beats, and is way groovier than the previously heard tracks - danceable, even. The following track, "Sanctum of Bones (Ossuary)," brings the trash to the record, and, like the rest of the tracks so far, is really solid. "Sentenced to Rot" is next, and is by far the shortest track, clocking in at 2:33. Smaller times don't mean smaller punches though, as this holds up with the tight line-up of songs. The second featured artist on the lineup is Alex Cloutier of Primal Horde, supplying vocals on "Feel the Blade." The song itself is, of course, chaotic as hell, as another guttural singer has joined the fray. Oh, I feel the blade, alright. One thing to note, and this doesn't pertain to this track only, but the I greatly appreciate the bass's appearance - it's not mixed and mastered into oblivion, and you can actually hear it. The last two tracks, "Bloodlust Sacrifice" and "Expired Existence" follow closely in the footsteps of the former tracks, and while deviation is scarce, they still hit hard. After a little under half an hour, you've been served by Scorching Tomb.

The old-school death metal feel they produce is sometimes uncanny - to the point where it may come off as worship. In that sense, also since it's been how many decades since the 90's, their sound isn't really something I've never heard before. Some songs tend to blend in with each other, to the point where I can't remember how track two, compared to track five really went. While the music, musicianship and production is great, I wish for a little more rules to be broken by the lads over at Scorching Tomb.