South Carolina, USA, a place where the air is so thick you could cut it with a knife; and little green grass snakes are a common sight. A place steeped in old lore, and history. Coming forth from these boggy mists, is the band OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GRAVES. This band is self-described as "filthy, dissonant, an experimental brand of cavernous death metal". "Harbinger Unceremonious", their newest album, is a morose, fast paced venture into myriad darkness and descension into madness. Musical controlled chaos, punctuated by the snare drums unique sound. This is a random, misshapen, mass of music jumbled together in a way that somehow works. With raging vocals, random styles of guitar riffs, bass guitar all over the place, all wrapped together in the drums that opt not to be kind to the ears. Yet, it works! It all works so well. It's so...raw. And in its rawness, there is a certain power.

"Herald of the Tempest" - Cavernous would be an accurate way to describe this. The guitar is long and drawn-out riffs, the vocals are low growls. The drums are really the lead role in this band, as the drums seem to lead and all else follows. Which, as before mentioned, seems to work well for this band as a whole. "Worship Cyclopean Monolith" - Faster paced, dark vocals; growl their way through the trenches of death and decay. Guitar that touches on melodic at times, an unexpected touch indeed. The drums are something to behold. I am entranced in a way. "Hallucinations, Morphine Phantasms" - A dark hallucination into aural dissonance. Raging growls from the hell phantasms of the mind. Long grating sounds of despair and longing echo into chasms of the deepest parts of utter ruin. "The Void Enveloping" - Chaotic and demonic vocals, hauntingly drawn-out guitar. Despite its morosity, this album is not necessarily slow. Just like in this song, it rises and falls in intensity. All the while being led by that snare drum.

OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GRAVES has a sound some may crave, with their rawness and nuance. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to "Harbinger Unceremonious" to write this review. I like what they did with the drums, it's not new per se. But it's a technique not often used. The lyrics were written on an intellectual level and sung with passion in those dark vocals. All in all, this band has a sound worth listening to.