FESSUS is a young Death Metal band coming from Vienna. They don’t bring anything new to the typical formula of the new wave of old school Death Metal, but the result is pretty ok, if you think that this project is only a couple of years old. “Subcutaneous Tomb” is their first full length album, released by the German label Darkness Shall Rise Productions, and it follows a self released demo from 2023, a live recording and a split vinyl with KILL THE LORD, both launched by the same label in 2024. The proposal is very derivative of bands such as AUTOPSY, OBITUARY, BOLT THROWER, BENEDICTION, DESECRATOR, CANCER and very early PUNGENT STENCH etc. The songwriting is a good balance between doomy parts, mid-tempos and some accelerations. The speed level never touches extreme beats, but settles down to a pretty basic mixture of d-beats and slow euroblasts, not particularly impressive. There’s a good amount of slow parts in double bass that fit well with the heavier riffs and the tremolo melodies. The songwriting is pretty groovy and not very technical, but quite consistent with the tradition of the genre, especially the vintage sound from the ‘80s and the early ‘90s. The weakest point is the production with the guitar distortion that would have deserved a deepest and chunkiest tone, instead here we’re facing a cawing and feeble sound, unable to add intensity to the whole guitar work. The vocals are pretty good, especially in the guttural parts that are reminiscent of Dave Ingram, whereas the screamings are not very impactful. An extra point goes to the guitar solos, that are well-reasoned and never intrusive. In conclusion, “Subcutaneous Tomb” is a decent offer for any collector of new bands into old school Death Metal, although the quality here is basic and repetitive. A sufficient but inconclusive album, especially for the total absence of personality that is fully confirmed by the cover artwork: a rip-off of “Considered Dead” by GORGUTS and “Divine Decomposition” by INSATANITY. www.instagram.com/festeringfessus, www.facebook.com/darknessshallriseproductions