Making their full-length debut after a 2021 EP called End of Games, Polish act Supreme Void is here to bring a copious amount of dissonant death metal darkness. You know, that Gorgut-ian, labyrinthine approach to extreme metal that layers on the atmosphere and suffocating bleak space just as much as it pushes the technical envelope. While Towards Oblivion isn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination, there’s solid potential to tap into as the band moves forward in the future.
With six songs spanning 38 minutes, know that you aren’t going to get some instantly digestible material with this album. That’s both a good and bad thing in this regard. Let’s look at the positive spots first, as there are quite a few. The band’s ability to generate some absolutely punishing and heavy moments are the brightest spot. Just listen to the opening of “Dissolution of Power” and you can feel the crushing weight of those riffs and drum blasts. There’s dribbles of twisted melodies here as well, playfully moving the band through more mid-tempo riffing, and when the tempos ramp up, the combination of the inhuman vocal roars and oppressive musical weight is impressive. It’s eerie, moody, and all but strangles the listener in it’s atmospheric darkness. Toss in the pummeling riff material and it’s a storm of death metal chaos that should delight those that relish this sort of material.
But that is also where the issues stem from too. The songs do some meandering, particularly the lead-off track “Remnants of Hope.” At 7-minutes, it’s a slow burner of a start. The haunting build up is appropriate and measured, but sometimes it feels like it just doesn’t feel like there’s a sufficient payoff in the end to justify the time spent on said escalation. There are some long songs on here, and they might benefit from a little ‘trimming of the fat’ so to speak. To quote the old ‘more is more’ quote that rises in metal, there’s a fantastic 4-5 minute song trapped that 7 minute behemoth. The other, more minor issue, is the traditional ‘death metal blur’ that occurs as you progress through the album. It’s no doubt sinister and ominous at every given turn, but it could benefit from some extra diversity. The melodies help, but they could use a bit more firepower surrounding them for maximum benefit.
Towards Oblivion is an enjoyable romp in extreme dissonance. While some flaws keep it from delivering it’s highest potential, those who revel in this sort of music are no doubt going to be drawn to it’s menacing atmosphere and sheer crushing weight. Supreme Void are tapping into some potent stuff for sure, but it’s not quite at masterpiece level yet.