Metal Maniac

The band I’m sharing some thoughts about is Anthropomorphic Soul and here’s a description by the man himself: Hailing from Portugal, I am an old, almost bald and semi fat bastard who was a metalhead already in the 80’s, so the younger generations call me a Dinosaur…or maybe it’s just because of my roar! I am poor and limited in gear, so don’t expect pristine production, just creative and fucking heavy music.

As it is expressed by Nuno Lourenço, the founder of Anthropomorphic Soul, he has a policy of having every release being completely different from the previous one and in this EP, titled “Back to Death”, he wanted to put out some Death Metal. He also mentions that he wanted to put aside his experimental side, although you can find some experimentations here and there. It is also stated that “Back to Death” was inspired by Obituary’s “The End Complete”

First, allow me to congratulate him and everyone else that fits this category for creating extreme music, with quality, no matter what so many difficulties you have to face. This is the proof that you are doing something for the love of music, as a passion for this, which I believe we all consider, the most ardent form of music.

The music is a “compilation” of classical Death Metal blended with a few avant-garde takes, all created with competence, resulting in a very dynamic release, varied and not simply a carbon copy of the older, more known releases. At times being fast and aggressive, the compositions are also painted with atmospheric passages and a unique approach which outcomes in an interesting, restless creation.

One of my favourite parts of listening to music is to feel it, well, to get to know how it actually feels. In Anthropomorphic Soul’s case, the whole aura is very diverse, in a moment, you feel like this part of the song is “spacious”, like in an open field and in other ones, it is suffocating, you can hardly breathe. One fine example of the creativity of this band is “The Sambaqui Syndrome”. Short, catchy and particular. To end up the EP, Anthropomorphic Soul covered a cult act from Brazil, Psychic Possessor’s Cubatão. All in all, a very recommended release that I highly appreciated for its effort, singularity and engaging ideas.

As for the production, you might think that it is a terrible work, but, in my humble opinion, nothing that would downgrade this release. Obviously, there are some elements that could be livelier, especially the vocals, which are great, but a bit overshadowed by the production, but if you enjoy old-school music, you are already used to this type of work. Well, at least for me, I “saw” no problem in this field. So, my friends, if you’re into this type of music, give Anthropomorphic Soul and support this guy, this musical project, as it’s all about the love for music.

Until next time.

Grade: 9,2/10

Band: Anthropomorphic Soul

Album: Back to Death (EP – 2015)

Label: Independent

Tracklist:

1. Skeptical Existence 03:47
2. Slow it Down, Oh Lord
3. The End Complete
4. In The Debris
5. The Sambaqui Syndrome
6. Cubatão (Psychic Possessor cover)

Anthropomorphic Soul is:

Nuno Lourenço – All Instruments & Vocals

Mattos Maul – Guitar solos on tracks 1, 2, 3 and 5; spoken word on track 3

Dimitri Pourille – Guitar solos on track 4

Official Bandcamp: https://anthropomorphicsoul.bandcamp.com/

Official Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anthropomorphicsoul

All photos belong to their rightful owners.