SATIRICAL MISANTHROPY is a "horror-themed Death Metal band" that formed in 2016 and comes from Costa Rica. "The Blvck Communion" is their debut album released December 2, 2019.

While this is only their first album, they show good musicianship and strong songwriting. Though "The Blvck Communion" is approximately 44 minutes long and has 11 tracks, it never feels tedious. It helps that individual tracks stay below 5 minutes in duration. SATIRICAL MISANTHROPY's style of death metal leans towards melodic, but without losing energy or pace and with elements of djent and brutal death thrown in. Guitar riffs add a bit of melody, but tracks don't become overly melodic due to the breakneck pace of the drumming. The drumming is great, but the tone could be improved. Another standout is the vocalist's range. Throughout the album, I heard everything from low gutturals to high screams. Last, but not least, is the bass. I always appreciate when I can hear the bass line, and even more so when the bass line is actually interesting.

The opening track "Intro (Bereshit)" is a deceptively symphonic track with eerie spoken and singing from a female vocalist. Next is "Profanum Disolve," the second track. The band names AT THE GATES as an inspiration, which is apparent within a minute of listening to this track. Melodic guitar riffs and a thrash-paced beat intertwine without one outdoing the other. Next, "The Illusionist of Nod" starts off a bit slow and heavy, with a few chugging riffs. Whereas the second track was somewhat melodic, this one has djent-style riffs and blast beat heavy sections.

The fifth track "Consumed (Blvck Apostle)" is notable due to the drumming at the end. The sixth track is "The Funeral of Light." This track has a good groove in it, from the combination of the rhythm of the vocalist's growls, the drums, and the riffs. That groove builds into almost a deathcore or slam-style breakdown, without going full chug. "Decipher" starts off with unsettling low and slow twangs from a guitar and growls snarled into the microphone. This track features another vocalist named Gabo Montero.

"Perception of Pain," the ninth track, begins with a few djent chugs, but quickly takes off with blast beats and a black metal guitar riff. There are even brief moments where the vocals take on the tortured screaming style characteristic of black metal and the pig squealing of deathcore and brutal death metal. The closing track is "Anatomical Introspection." It's a strong closing track, with a melodic backing riff, good shredding in the solo, and some quality pig squeals.

Overall, I recommend this album to fans of death metal, particularly death metal tinged with a bit of melody, like early AT THE GATES. They explored a few different styles of death metal, but managed to keep the album cohesive. This was a solid debut effort from SATIRICAL MISANTHROPY.