Well, I must use again, the same old saying: here I go again, and I'm not speaking about old WHITESNAKE's hit.

My words mean again, that old same problem: you can play an old Metal style, of course. I'm not saying that you can't play it, but you must have a strong personality, one that will guide you in the creation of something that we never heard before. If you put your soul and heart along with your efforts, you really can do great. But without it, you'll be just reclining old musical clichés, and your work will, for sure, drown.

Having in mind all difficulties to record an album in Brazil, but being just with those who do their efforts, I must state that ESCARNIUM has a lot of potential, but the compilation, "Godless Shrine of Decay", shows exactly what I stated above.

As a strong tendency that exists in the Metal scene here, they play a Death Metal way that I inspired by ancients from the 90s, as MORBID ANGEL, BENEDICTION, DISMEMBER and CANNIBAL CORPSE. But even not being a Dolly Metal clone, they are just another name into the scene, having nothing that can make them an outstanding band. Guttural grunts, some very good guitar riffs and solos, and a heavy work done by bass guitar and drums are presented here, but nothing new at all.

The sound quality is nasty, and raw in a way that we are not so used. But even this way, we can understand what they are playing. Even the re-mastering done by JB Van Der Wal (from ABORTED) could do from this a better album.

Gathering materials from the EP "Genocide Ritual", from the Brazilian version of their first album "Excruciating Existence", from the EP "Rex Vermiform" and from their first Demo Tape "Covered in Decadence", this compilation really is an item for their fans. But I really have my doubts if it will conquer more than these fans.

The matter is not that their 16 songs are all bad, but there's nothing different from many others works done before. Of course you can find some good moments, as you can hear on "Human Waste", the thunderous "Salvation Through Zyklon B" (here, some very good riffs are presented), the bitter aggressiveness of "Self Proclaimed Messiah" (pretty good work done on bass and drums), the album version for "Covered in Decadence", and the abrasive and brutal "Rex Verminorum".

But as I told above: their work shows that they are really a good band, but needs to put out their musical personality, that one that will make them different from other bands.

For now, a good promise.<