Ah, Finland.  Other than Sweden, I can't think of very many countries that produce such high quality music in such high numbers.  I haven't never heard of GOREPHILIA before their promo came to me but after listening to their latest, and third, full length album, "In The Eye Of Nothing," I can safely add their name to the countries perpetually growing list of kick ass metal bands. The band was formed in 2007 and in addition to their third full lengths, they also have two demos, an EP, and one split under their belts.  This is an important album for them as their original vocalist Henri, stage name Nemesis, committed suicide in 2018.  Guitarist Jukka has taken over on vocals. My condolences go out to the band and Henri's family.

Those hard times must had gave the band a steely resolve because this is a very strong death metal album.  A lot bands, even the more extreme ones, are mixing in various styles these days without being part of any one genre.  There isn't anything wrong with that but it nice to hear a band that is laser focused on hitting one solid sound. The album's production is surprisingly clear and modern but not overly—the atmosphere still packs quite the punch.  I should also mention the mixing, which is spot on; every instrument can be heard equally and none of them try to outdo the others.

The guitar tone is cutting and represents the riffs as being real and full instead of just a blocked off wall of sound buried in the mix.  The bass and drums are balanced well against each other for a strong foundation but don't hide behind the guitars or vocals. "Walls of Weeping Eyes,"  begins with the clash of drums and furious riffs. A mid tempo groove sets in early, which I appreciated.  So many death metal bands just play fast as hell for the sake of it but "In The Eye Of Nothing," takes a much more methodical approach.  The interplay and exchanges between the band are very smooth and born out of an obvious confidence and comfortableness between the members. "Wall.." is such a strong opener because it instantly tells the listener what to expect but also hints at even better things to come.

"Perpetual Procession," opening moments are immediately infectious, combining groove with thunderous bass and very slight usage of melody.  The movement at 3:33 is a ten ton hammer of crunchy, galloping riffs and a solo that wouldn't sound out of place on a MORBID ANGEL album.  The drums ramp up intensity after the solo, building the way for a sudden burst of speed to come raging thru. "Simplicity of Decay" is one of my favorite tracks on the album because it really does remind me of a more modern day version of MORBID ANGEL: menacing, underground, and use of intensity as a captivating element.  Towards the end of the song, I love how the bass just crawls out from underneath the final guitar solo and just grabs and pulls you towards the spoken word death growls.

The final track "Ark of the Undecipherable" ends the album with a bang as it has some the album's faster parts.  The first half is rising action, lead by the increasing demand of the drums.  It reaches its zenith to allow a guitar solo to switch up the atmosphere, lacing the rhythms after the first solo with clever lead work.  The second solo sees the song slowing down and letting lose some seriously primordial screams. GOREPHILIA's "In the Eye Of Nothing," is  a great modern representation of the state of death metal today and proves that death metal can still be played with energy and excitement.