From Bandcamp, “Often accused of having no sense of measure, Asthâghul churns out a new double album that is grandiose, symphonic, psychedelic, liturgical, delirious. In a word, excessive. "Ghostigmatah" is a prism that reflects every single nuance of the ESOCTRILIHUM sound. Conceptually, the album is divided into four chapters, each of which tells a ritual stage in the long journey of dead souls towards the jaws of the eight-eyed psychopomp Abxulöm, who will finally deliver them to eternal nothingness. A post-mortem ritual that is told in the secret grimoire of the “Ghostigmatah,” a sort of modern Necronomicon that constitutes another piece in ESOCTRILIHUM's phantasmagorical visionary world.”

The album has ten long-titled songs. “Hark! The Bewitched Trumpet of the Red Harbinger Is Calling the Dead to Gather” is first. The sounds that spew forth are like the worst utterings that Hell has to offer…thick, resonating bass notes, a wall of guitars, backing keyboards that are harrowing, machine gun drumming, and harsh vocals screams/gutturals. “Kneeling Before the Keeper of the Golden Key to the Absolute Void” has a more traditional Black Metal sound, but still, this is a lot of sonority coming from a single composer. The keyboards add a layer of melody to the song, but it’s mostly a landscape of controlled aggression. “Flesh Pierced by the Blades of Thritônh, Eyes Devoured by Vulth Suidarl, the Giant Fly” has both deeper elements on the low end, and surprisingly melodic ones on the upper end. A lot of the song seems to be part of a sight seeing trip down each plane of Hell.

“Hypnotic Danse Macabre of the Blind Noctivagants” embraces melody, and leaves some of the aggression behind. The abrupt change of pacing is a testament to the composer’s songwriting skills. “Orgiastic Sacrificial Mass to Conjur Abxulöm, Psychopomp Supreme” returns to some of the naked aggression of the previous songs. Harrowing elements abound, and it’s akin to being tortured over and over again. The bass work here is outstanding. “The Cosmic Deathbringer Comes, Riding a Bloody Horse of Goshenite” features deep, cavernous vocals and chaos that almost sees the wheels come off of the speeding bus. There is so much dissonance, it’s about all that you can peer through. “Mauled, Swallowed and Dissolved Into Nothingness by the 8-Eyed Psychopomp” features a gentler sound as well as some clean vocals, but take that with a grain of salt…it’s still dark, dangerous, and aggressive.

“Supplication of the Veiled Saint from the Secret Book of the Ghostigmatah Rites” is the final offering, and mysterious tones end the album. For me, the psychedelic landscape brings up more questions than answers. The album seemed to encapsulate everything that someone might come across in the underground…chaotic aggression, and vocals that can frighten you even when you are asleep. The composer is obviously talented, and the album is just diverse enough. Any fans of Extreme Metal will find this to their liking.