On October 12th, Saturnal Records is proud to present RODENT EPOCH's striking debut album, "Rodentlord". An exquisitely nasty work, "Rodentlord" proves that the filth & fury for which Finnish Black Metal has become renown in this millennium, is far from dead. In fact, it's UNDEAD, and RODENT EPOCH are here to exhume the sound and bring forth their own epoch. RODENT EPOCH was founded in 2009 in Oulu, Finland. Upon the band's formation, the primary influences fueling their filth & fury became darkness, sickness, cosmos, war, death, intoxication, psychedelia, horror, metal of all kinds - be it black, death, thrash, or doom - punk and rock 'n' roll. Suitably armed, RODENT EPOCH proceeded to release their debut demo, "EOR", in 2011, with the "Hellbastard" EP arriving a year later, both laying bare the band's crude 'n' rude aesthetic.

Now arrives "Rodentlord", which is a journey cathartic sweat: RODENT EPOCH murders your ego and reveals your filthy animal host. Cosmic (un-) learning, noise worship, blood, fire, demons, trance and psychosis...all this and plenty more filth goes into the paradigmatic Finnish black metal lustily unleashed across "Rodentlord's" 45-minute runtime. Yet, compared to many of their contemporaries both past and especially present, there's a distinctly punkish and daresay-rockin' thrust to RODENT EPOCH. Their eight animalistic hymns sing thus:

"RODENTLORD IS ALIVE
WE HAVE ALL RAISED HIM
WE ARE ALL GUILTY"

"Piss on purple candles, burn the robe... Come to me and my companions, come to the obscure dominions. We drugged the planet. Welcome to the mayhem, Me and You...
Molten black metal is already pouring down the tower walls. The monster awakens. WAKE UP! Necroseer, wake up! Necroseer, pure guts, pure man... "

"FUNERAL NEMESIS
MASTER NECRO
FUCK THE WORLD"

The gutters explode, and your funeral has arrived. Its name is "Rodentlord", and its vessels are the arrogant bastards of RODENT EPOCH. "High on Hades" kicks the album off with a Blackened Thrash-paced fireball. The vocals are coarse, but with the fast pace they remain keen. The guitar is fluid, drums keep up pace well with the tempo throughout. Feels more like Thrash is what their strength is, rather than Black Metal. They seem to have blended the styles together well so far for the opening. "Rodent Lord" continues in the Thrash-paced intro in the same way as before, but with better melodies from the guitar. Changing the bends is a good idea here. There are a few mad Black Metal screams thrown in, similar to many more bands before, though it does add a good depth. For me, it's a bit too much like MAYHEM to feel original in their own way, which is not saying its bad, but in parts of the song I was expecting to hear the words "FREEZING MOON" shouted out.

"Cult Of Mission" oozes out with a much slower tempo, keeping with the MAYHEM feel once. The Thrash aspect has disappeared, which is a shame as it was a different kinda melody to what we come to expect. This now feels like it's trying to be Black Metal in a stereotypical sound, which may not work. "Mayhem In the Courtyard Of God" starts with a slow intro, but kicks off with the return of the Thrash aspect, which is a great change. The melody is repeating itself throughout the song, but it's a welcomed change so its not too noticeable. "Twisted Covenant" brings a rage-filled vocal approach inline with a frantic-paced guitar, a thick bass and a drum beat doing very well to implement the strengths of all. The pace here slows down to allow the Black Metal aspect to be appreciated, but it feels like their own sound, not a copy of a Legend.<