Like necrotic seepage dripping from a gangrenous wound, Lord Mantis reemerged from the gutters anew with Charlie Fell back in the band, and their latest offering, “Universal Death Church” is disastrously filthy, the heaviest and most putrescent of blackened sludge has been funneled and condensed into a nightmare-cocktail for the world to imbibe. While many extreme metal bands base themselves thematically around a return to pre-industrial revolution eras, the dark ages, and other more naturalistic approaches to the occult and evil, Universal Death Church aims both barrels straight into the back-alleys and dope dens of the modern world, a new dark age of addiction, the benighted wilderness of the present era.
This album was dished out raw and reeking on November 22 of last year, and I loved it immediately due to its bearing traits of preceding Lord Mantis albums “Pervertor” and “Death Mask”, but with an outcome far superior to either (though both releases are excellent by their own right). The first two lines of lyrics to opening track “Santa Muerte” (named for a deadly batch of fentanyl going around the Kensington area at the time) are as dismal as dismal gets: “Mother of Mercy lives in Kensington/I heard she’s been turned out too”. Universal Death Church is a paroxysm of furious vitriol. This one has teeth. Support Lord Mantis and watch their music video for Santa Muerte below:
Or if you prefer, you can listen to the album in its entirety down here:
Universal Death Church by LORD MANTIS
Towers of Rust 