Review COFFINS ‘Sinister Oath’

Coffins, that is hellish musical aspect of Japan. The four-piece from Tokyo are active since 1996 in nearly two decades the band established death metal from the land of the rising sun.

The latest studio album, ‘Beyond the Circular Demise’, was launched in 2019 and five years later, Coffins return with their next strike. ‘Sinister Oath’ is an album with a devilish grin from start to finish. Meat cleaver riffs and deep growls are the main pillars of this heavy piece of music. Hereby the band doesn’t solely build on fast-paced death metal tracks. The real heaviness comes shows its deadly fascination when the tempo is reduced. The title track is the perfect example. It is a slower-paced track that entails blastbeat too, but the basic structure is kept in a more moderate pace which creates a diabolic atmosphere.

Coffins play oldschool death metal which they vary in a good fashion. There are short and crisp blasts like the instrumental ‘B.T.C.D.’. What could be seen as an intro is the first track on the album and to start such a blast with an instrumental show that the guys from Tokyo have a very own idea about how to build up a tracklist.

Next to such an opener, songs like ‘Chain’ represent the anarchic vibe of ‘Sinister Oath’. Coffins unveil the entire fascination about death metal in less than three minutes. There are no compromises or fretboard gymnastics. It’s the pure energy of death metal that roars.

In contrary to these short and intense songs, the band also out with ‘Everlasting Spiral’ a song on the album that stands out due to its doom-driven riff. It is a slow and sinister death metal anthem, a beast with the potential to pulverize everything that stands in its way.

‘Sinister Oath’ is a stellar death metal release from the land of the rising sun. Coffins show their entire passion for this genre and manage to create an album that is fulfilling all wishes of death metal fans. Each of these songs pumps a lot of iron and is a severe challenge for everybody’s neck muscles.