Today, Nuclear War Now! Productions sets February 15th, 2021 as the international release date for the highly anticipated second album of Japan’s Evil, Possessed by Evil, on vinyl LP format. The CD and cassette tape versions will be released earlier, on December 25th.
As previously demonstrated on Evil‘s celebrated 2017 debut album, Rites of Evil, as well as the demo, two live recordings, and split with Siege Column that have since emerged, these 12 tracks of black/thrash metal once again capture the darkness of first-wave black metal and unite it with the aggressive precision of early Teutonic thrash. Previous points of comparison between Evil and early Sodom continue to hold true, as do those that recognize similarities with the most notorious of Japanese hardcore outfits, especially insofar as the unhinged vocal delivery is concerned. Evil is anything but apologetic in its reverence to its metal heritage, which is what lends its recordings such a high degree of authenticity.
Possessed by Evil is an unabashed conglomerate of riffs, accentuated by incisive leads and rabidly barked vocals. If there is one notable contrast with the debut album, it would be an increased cohesiveness among the instruments. Whereas Rites of Evil at times felt a bit loose, the performances on this album are characterized by noticeably tighter synchronicity, which one could logically assume to be the result of the band’s greater longevity. In any case, the outcome is one that represents a step forward from an already impressive debut and one that confirms Evil among the best of its black/thrash metal contemporaries.
In the meantime, hear Possessed by Evil in its entirety here:
Cover art and tracklisting as follows:
Tracklisting for Evil (Japan)’s Possessed by Evil 1. 六道輪廻 The Cycle of Pain
2. 夜叉 Yaksa
3. 怨殺 Revenge
4. 雷神 Raizin
5. 般若波羅蜜多 Paramount Evil
6. 首斬り Reaper
7. 地獄の門 The Gate of Hell
8. 歪な梵鐘 Hell’s Evil Bells
9. 奈落の底 Bottom of Hell
10. 閻魔天 Enmaten
11. 凶惡 Possessed by Evil
12. 惡鼻達磨 Evil Way of Live
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