Mortuary Drape
All the Witches Dance

THE REVIEW

I know that metal is not among the favorite genres of Debaser's audience, at least the majority of it, and I've read an ungenerous and banal definition regarding the group I am about to review.

In any case, one must be brave, and if you like an album, why not write or talk about it?

The Alessandrian Mortuary Drape do not hail from Alexandria, Egypt, but in a certain sense, it's as if they are inhabitants of those lands. A strong interest in the occult (necromancy but not only) and a marked propensity for mystery make our beloved minstrels honorary citizens of the capital of Egyptian esotericism.

Their musical secret? Evoking the dark sound of Goblin and Jacula, the heavy metal of Mercyful Fate, and the sonic extremism of Celtic Frost, Bathory, and early Morbid Angel.

Oh, if you're not interested, you can safely move on to the next review!

For those who stayed, however, I highly recommend listening to their official debut released in 1994. The band had been active since '86 (!), but until the nineties, they only released demos and EPs.

With this first full-length, terrible cover aside, you enter the heart of a magical, haunted, and terribly fascinating night. Tracks like "Tregenda (Dance In Shroud)", "Funeral Chant", "13th Way", and the formidable "Medium Mortem" offer us an Italian and Mediterranean path to Black Metal. A Black Metal light years away from the blind Scandinavian fury, from certain cheap Satanism and the pedestrian imitation of more renowned names. Mortuary Drape knows how to be original, and they've shown it with this and other works. Not many, it's true, but as they say... "better a few but good."

From the godfathers of tricolor horror metal, Death SS (obligatory touch), the necromantic Mortuary Drape draws without fear, especially concerning the iconographic aspect and live scenography. But, I repeat, this is not about plagiarism or a lack of ideas.

Listen to "All The Witches Dances" and you’ll agree with me. That's all for now.