BLACK SHROUD has themselves listed as an American black metal band. I must be honest here, to me, they sound like some authentic old school Death Metal with a blackened sound. It might be splitting hairs on this one on whether anyone would consider them black metal or not, but either way, they are completely brutal. Black Shroud comes from Ohio, and they offer up a heart pounding first EP in "Death Culture". The album kicks off with "Tower of Silence" and breaks right into sounding like an old school death metal, similar in nature to MORBID ANGEL. The deep gutter growls are carried into vicious blast beats and blistering guitar riffing. The sound beats you up from start to finish. And being that the track sits at seven minutes long, it is a treat to say the least. Most death metal tracks are not nearly as long. The track carries on with the old school death metal sound from start to finish. This sound is why I find it hard to really classify the band as black metal.

There is a more prototypical Black Metal sound that enters towards the end of the track. I would say "Immolation of Souls" adds more of the blackened sound. I can hear the black metal sound a lot more in this track. Maybe it's because of the vocal brutality that throws me off on the black metal label. The length of the tracks is impressive for being this brutal of a band. Even with "Mellified Man" I am still hearing the old school death metal sound. I hear a lot of similarities in the musical style of this track and "Tower of Silence". From start to finish it is just a gut punching brutal track. "Inhumation" brings in some eerie recorded speaking then kicks right back into the brutal sound of blast beats and fast guitar riffing. If nothing else, BLACK SHROUD offers consistent heavy brutality. I was impressed with the more instrumental side that "Endocannibal" starts off with. Then the track leads into a more definite black metal sound.

However you would like to classify them, BLACK SHROUD offers a good outing in "Death Culture". The album is a mixture of black and death metal sounds that brings you to your knees with its gut punching brutal sound. You will bang your head to this one for sure. I would like to see where they go next, and hopefully soon they will come with an even longer full-length album.