Artist: Necrotesque
Country: The Netherlands
Label: Grotesque Metal Productions
Formats: LP / CD
Year: 2026
Personally, I’m not usually very optimistic about the state of the current Death Metal scene. There really is far too much run-of-the-mill stuff and, on top of that, not enough quality; not the best combination. That’s why I often grumble about the number of bands churning out material that can really only be regarded as an insult to the pioneers and early adopters of the late 80s and early 90s. I regularly drop the names of folks like Rogga Johansson, who’s been using the same riff his entire career, but to be fair: things have simply been pretty dire for a while now; it’s not just Rogga’s fault. It’s certainly no different within the borders of my homeland, the Netherlands. When I hear the soulless tedium that bands like Graceless, Bodyfarm, Soulburn, Burial Remains, Massive Assault or Mouflon are churning out, it really kills my spirit.
I’m not saying that Necrotesque are serving up anything particularly sensational, but I certainly didn’t find it a chore to listen to. These days, that’s quite something. The bald foursome from Helmond released their second full-length album just before the summer, once again a project they’ve handled entirely themselves. Maybe the fact that they’re self-releasing this album too says something about the current Death Metal scene, or perhaps it’s a conscious choice on the band’s part. I’m not sure, but it certainly gives you food for thought.
Necrotesque take a slightly different approach to their Death Metal compared to some of their Dutch counterparts; they don’t indulge in experimentation (like Soulburn) or doomy flirtations (like Graceless). In fact, Necrotesque are pretty much the most blunt product of the current Dutch Death Metal scene. With a clear leaning towards American-styled Death Metal, with ditto gory lyrics and visuals, it is not difficult to guess what bands have been Necrotesque’s direct sources of inspiration. But a bit of Grave is also easy to filter out of the band’s sound that is a more or less fifty-fifty blend of an old school and modern approach. Chugging riffs, rather good albeit a bit one-dimensional drums and deep guttural vocals: you could say this is Death Metal by numbers. Simple and easy, but that is exactly what the band’s strength lies, and it kind of works.
I absolutely do not like the title track that features After Forever from Temu-like female vocals. And, frankly, I am even less fond of the “funny” lyrics like “Your entrails on the rails” and “Kale koppen niet te stoppen” (translates to something like “You can’t stop skinheads”). That sort of thing worked for Gorerotted back in the 00s, but here and now, Necrotesque completely misses the mark.
And so we’ve come full circle, in a way. With ‘Et Mortui Resurgent’, Necrotesque haven’t produced a masterpiece, nor will it go down in history as a turning point. It remains a middle-of-the-road Death Metal album, but one that can, to a certain extent, provide a moment’s entertainment. As I said before: that’s quite something these days.
