Unfathomable Ruination – Decennium Ruinae (Willowtip)

Wednesday, 19th May 2021 By Katarina McGinn

Rating: 8/10

The first release from the uber-brutal Unfathomable Ruination since their 2019 full-length, Enraged & Unbound, Decennium Ruinae (as the name may suggest) celebrates 10 years of the band. A short but sweet EP with three new songs and a reworking of an old favorite, what it lacks in length it makes up for in devastating ferocity.

Like similar-minded act Defeated Sanity, Unfathomable Ruination has made their name off of being able to provide an absolute gut-punch of an experience while still keeping it just technical enough with a few shades of melody thrown in to keep the experience a pummeling one that will stick with you for some time. The EP begins with the reworked/rerecorded version of “Suspended in Entropic Dissapation,” which is the most violent of the bunch, and serves as a reminder of where the band has come from over the course of a decade. The three new tracks, notably “Disciples of Pestilence,” offer a solid range for such a bludgeoning act. Said track has a lavish opening that is full of atmosphere, and the twisted melodies that follow once it picks up steam are a real treat. “A Withered Embrace” takes a more urgent and blistering approach, but still finds time to groove it out and provide some punishing yet technical riffs that do a nice job of making their presence known.

As a celebration to where the band has been over the last ten years, Decennium Ruinae is an easy pick up for brutal death fans. Raging and rolling extremity that captures an essence of hooks without compromising their vision, Unfathomable Ruination know how to give a musical beating to the listener. As an EP, it’s also a great little intro to one of death metal’s more extreme acts for those who have somehow missed out so far.