Necrodeath
Into the Macabre

In celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the official release of "Into The Macabre" (the first full-length album by Genoa's Necrodeath), the biggest challenge for the writer becomes managing to reconcile a necessary objectivity of judgment with the enthusiastic approach often taken towards some "historic" productions, especially if they are of Italian origin.

To be honest, it would be foolish and pointless not only to attempt to diminish the stature and seminal nature of Claudio and company's debut, but also, and above all, to deny that Necrodeath was more than just a "simple" cult band for our country. In the second half of the '80s, the four from Genoa were, for a brief but intense period, a true source of pride, a medal to wear with pride worldwide, the most concrete and vital testament of an Italian extreme scene that was surely secondary when compared to the two great German and American basins (to which, for historical correctness, Northern Europe should also be added), but nevertheless valid when considering the quality of the groups it managed to produce: Death SS, Skizo, and Bulldozer above all.

For those unfamiliar with the band's output in its original lineup, it suffices to know that Necrodeath's sound can indeed be defined as a synthesis of the stylistic features that characterized the global extreme scene of the era. First and foremost, the Slayer: an inevitable and necessary influence, but the band does not just gather what Araya and company sowed with the masterpiece "Reign In Blood," but, going backward, primarily draws upon the darker sounds and atmospheres of the sulfurous "Hell Awaits." Secondly, the German thrash in general and the triad in particular, with specific regard to the vocal aspect. And, again, the Possessed (from whose debut the proto-death attitude is taken), the glacial creature of Tom Warrior (at the time busy creating that obscene masterpiece that was "Into The Pandemonium") and, notably, the uncompromising and evil fury of early Bathory (who, just during the same period, were releasing the historic "Under The Sign Of The Black Mark").

Precisely from the blend of these multiple elements, a musical formula emerges which, although far from being genuinely innovative, has ended up being not only an excellent "product of its time", but also and above all a source of great inspiration never hidden and indeed celebrated for the black scene to come. Thus, alongside more canonical and linear tracks (above all, the splendid "Southenerom" and "Necrosadist"), there are episodes where the temptation of the band to explore even more violent, fast, and dark territories is almost palpable compared to what had been previously presented by the "masters" (take, for instance, the concluding "The Undead"). Thus is born an evil and primordial hybrid, founded on the almost total absence of melodic concessions, wild and relentlessly aggressive drumming, and brief, sporadic, but intense "program changes" (consider the spoken growl in "Mater Tenebrarum" - surely among the best songs on the record - or the acoustic arpeggios alternating with the raging black fury of "Internal Decay"). A sort of latent desire to dare which, although not having the strength needed to fully indicate a new course, certainly does not allow this record to be labeled as a typical product of the '80s thrash scene.

The final result, if in some ways it can truly be said to be exciting (especially when taking into account the environment and means with which it was brought to light), cannot, in my opinion, boast the title of masterpiece. If, by and large, one willingly overlooks some uncertainties and roughnesses in the songwriting (read: "unspeakable rawness" especially during the solos and lack of originality in the arrangements), the true flaw of the album lies in the production. To be clear, "Into The Macabre" is neither the first nor the last of the '80s thrash/black/death albums to "enjoy" a poor and approximate production. Much more than in other cases, however, the final result ends up being truly compromised: in addition to the inevitable background buzz, the infernal noise that erupts whenever good Peso merely touches the cymbals, and the "usual" balance issues, it is especially the guitars (buzzy and muffled) that suffer from a truly questionable choice of sound, which unfortunately remained unchanged (and isn't that quite annoying?) even in the 1998 cd reissue curated by our own Scarlet.

An excellent product and an outstanding debut, then, certainly not without its flaws but surely deserving to have brought international prestige to our country and, above all, for having contributed to pushing the boundaries of extreme human music a little further.