"Surging Throng of Evil's Might" is the debut release from New Mexico band SUPERSTITION. They don't have much of an online presence as of now, and online presence is really crucial for a band in this day and age. The first track, "Death's Fuming Passage", has an orchestral intro with atmospheric noise on top, and it slowly builds with the cymbals and distorted guitar joining in. When the main riff finally drops, it's clear that this is standard blackened death metal. The mix is super indicative of the modern obscure black metal style - everything feels very far back in the mix, there's endless reverb on the vocals, which are hard to discern at times. There are some nice surprises as far as changing up the sections go, and there is some progression and build throughout the sections. Some of these riffs are really catchy too, which you typically don't expect from black metal.

The next track is untitled, and opens again with orchestral music, and you get a small taste of the mentioned tape manipulation. It's a short instrumental track, more to set the mood than anything else. "Outer Mutation" immediately brings it back to the black metal feel. The guitar playing itself could be a little cleaner - the rhythm is off here and there. But there are a lot of layers to the intro section, and it's really cool to listen to and try to decipher all of these layers. The tom fills throughout the first minute add an extra layer of interest to everything. The second minute is full of classic black metal elements - the blast beats, the tremolo-picked riffs. I know this style of production is super characteristic of this style of death metal, but I really wish the mix was clearer - there always seems to be a level of noise over everything, and it distracts from the songs as a whole. Some of these sections veer into MORBID ANGEL territory, particularly in this song, and it's always cool to be able to identify influences just from listening to a section.

The title track opens, again, with an ominous orchestral section. The entire song is standard black metal, but these sections really build and progress in a way that a lot of black metal bands are missing. The final song, "Grave Portals" gets right into that driving, high-energy feel. The drumming on this album is really solid - the double-kicks, the fills, the blast beats, they've all been on point. The production leaves a lot to be desired - in the drum mix, the guitar tones, the vocals, the overall mix - but the songs themselves are fun to listen to and even get catchy here and there. There's a nice flow to the songs and sections that is absent in a lot of other songs of this style.