Artist: Necromorbid
Country: Italy
Label: Godz Ov War Productions
Formats: LP / Cassette Tape / CD
Year: 2026
The Italian band Necromorbid has never been one to work hard and churn out releases at a rapid pace. You could say this is entirely in keeping with Italian tradition; most bands take things rather slowly and seem to be busy with all sorts of things, except actually releasing music. Necromorbid’s first two albums date from 2016 and 2020, and although both have been re-released a few times and a split 7” EP saw the light of day in late 2025, it wasn’t until this year that a follow-up was released. The band has now found a home with the Polish label Godz Ov War Productions, which has released this new album full of finely tuned Black/Death Metal across all three relevant formats.
Necromorbid isn’t a band that set out to redefine Extreme Metal or go down in history as the band that made an essential contribution to the genre. At least, I find that hard to imagine. Just like on their previous two albums, Necromorbid sound good once again, both in terms of composition and production, but they bring nothing new or truly inspiring to the table. To begin with, it’s not easy to really stand out when it comes to this hybrid genre; it quickly becomes a bit flat and feels somewhat indecisive. It really takes something special to stand out, or to be in a league of its own.
And honestly, that is not the case here. Death Metal might dominate in the Necromorbid formula for the most part, but is still pulled somewhat towards Black Metal by the (rather weak) vocals and an overall dark atmosphere. So then it needs that special extra thing, which simply isn’t there. On the positive side, though, there is a good use of dynamics, ensuring that the faster sections are well balanced with slower passages. A sign that the individual musicians’ musical qualities are certainly up to scratch, something that was already undeniable on their previous recordings.
Then there is the aforementioned good production, which throws a rather large spanner in the works here and prevents this third album from really leaving a lasting impression. It all sounds just a little too polished; the much-needed rough edges are missing, which actually makes this sound most like a mid-era Belphegor album. There’s certainly the potential here to create a raw and intense album, but it doesn’t really come to fruition due to production shortcomings.
Fans of Death Metal with a strong Black Metal influence and a touch of ‘Bestial’-style barbarism will find something to enjoy here. But I’m afraid the album’s expiration date doesn’t extend much beyond its running time; due to the lack of any real highlights or a sense of awe, there’s simply little incentive to press play again.
