Necrodeath
Mater Of All Evil

"Mater Of All Evil" is released exactly after 10 years of silence, by a band unjustly placed in the oblivion, guilty only of having had the courage to propose in Italy the lesson imparted by Kreator, Slayer, Possessed, and Venom (already seminal in the international extreme metal scene).

The Necrodeath formed in 1984 in Genoa by Peso (drums), Ingo (vocals), Claudio (guitar), and Paolo (bass). "Into the macabre" (1987) and "Fragments of insanity" (1989) went practically unnoticed, as a consequence of both being ahead of their time and finding in the Italian soil a hostile environment for the musical proposal of the four young Genovese. The nineties then saw the escalation of death and black metal genres, which reached their highest points in Scandinavian countries (Dissection, Mayhem, Entombed, Dismember, At the gates) and the USA (Death, Cannibal Corpse, Obituary, Morbid Angel), although by that point, the Italian Necrodeath had already disbanded in favor of new musical projects (notably Peso's Sadist).

1999: Riding the wave of the Swedish school, definable under the label of trash death, new trash, melodic death, trashcore (and more), which sees extreme metal revived in a clearly renewed key, the name of Necrodeath unexpectedly starts to resonate again: thus comes out "Mater of all evil", with a half-revamped lineup, featuring the new bassist John and the former OperaIX Flegias on vocals. A record with a massive sound that skillfully mixes primordial death/black, with more modern thrash and typically 80s metalcore-punk (DRI, Suicidal Tendencies, Nuclear Assault, SOD).

The result is a sonic impact that few expected. Dirty and simple riffs, chained to tight and powerful rhythms always teetering between black metal and punk hardcore. A finally worthy production, which unlike the previous ones, manages to make the sounds stand out well, without falling into cacophonic confusion (great for myself, who never believed in the traditionalist theory that equates poor production with being "True"). With this album, the band resumes full activity, starting from then to constantly compose new material until today (not up to the level of this full-length) but especially with an intense live activity that will see them accompany artists like Slayer (Tattoo The Planet 2001 - Milan) and stand alongside the already talented and very Italian Novembre.

The lyrics are confirmed to be very strong and violent with typically anti-Christian contents as in "At the roots of evil" and "Serpent" ("ET MORTUS EST DEI FILIUS PRORSUS CREDIBILE EST QUIA INEPTUM EST ET SEPULTUS RESURREXITCERTUM EST QUIA IMPOSSIBILE EST Lucifer is his nameI am the serpent and I listen only to myselfI am the serpent and without laws I live"), but also with Lovecraftian themes in the two tracks that preceded the album's release: "The creature" and "Hate & Scorn", for which two music videos were even made that were in rotation on the then-existing TMC2 (...Sgrang....good times).

Without detracting from the historical value of the previous releases, for those who want to approach this group for the first time, I strongly recommend starting with "Mater Of All Evil", if only for the modernity of how it sounds and the greater impact that results. Necrodeath were among the very few cases where a niche genre like death metal received a worthy response in our country and a certain resonance abroad: artists like Phil Anselmo, Cradle of Filth, Immortal, and At the Gates have indeed mentioned Necrodeath in their interviews as a major influence. A courageous band that knew how to anticipate, sow, and then get back in the game with remarkable results.