Artist: Wampyric Rites / Oath of Malignancy
Country: Ecuador
Label: Wolfkult Religion / Massacre Productions
Formats: Split 7” EP
Year: 2026
‘The Oath’ is a double feature of Ecuadorian Black Metal bands, with Wampyric Rites on one side and Oath of Malignancy on the other. Two musicians, Wampyric Strigoi and Satanic Warlord, feature in both bands, but the sound that both bands bring to this union is quite different.
Wampyric Rites is probably no stranger to the follower of South American Black Metal, and with their contribution ‘Transilvania’ the band continues their musicial journey in a fashion that closely fits to their more recent releases. The song has a clear sense of melancholy buried underneath, giving it some likeliness to the Finnish Black Metal scene. As with their more recent tracks, the song is incredibly dynamic, changing pace, twisting riffs, adding guitar solos and groove while building atmosphere in slower parts. The shrill piercing cries of vocalist Wampyric Strigor are excellent and clear in the mix, although admittedly the guitars get somewhat buried under the drums. That doesn’t detract from the enjoyment factor however, it just adds a sense of rawness and Wampyric Rites continues to impress with their dynamism and catchy melodies.
In contrast to the battery of release of their split partner, the output of Oath of Malignancy thus far is rather moderate. But last year’s ‘Sabbath Witchcraft’ was certainly an impressive way to start, and that continues with their contribution to ‘The Oath’. On this new track, the band continues to profess their adoration for the occult Black Metal sound pioneered by first wave Black Metal bands, and particularly the Hellenic scene. Compared to the rather uptempo and shrill sound of their split counterparts, ‘Sacramento Impio’ starts off much more slowly. The song is reliant on keyboards, and the deep growl brings the style towards for instance the early Varathron recordings, at least in the first minutes. The keyboard continues to play a large role throughout the track in the atmosphere, but the rather low tuning of the guitars pushes it into Death and Doom Metal territories at times. As time progresses the song also takes a more unruly twist with some higher tempos and grooving drums, but the keyboards always keep the track back in the Black Metal line. While most of the track is more keyboard driven, the guitars take more of a podium towards the end, with a particularly nice section where the guitars and keys follow the same melody. The entrancing atmosphere certainly works for Oath of Malignancy, as the song comes rather close to the level of their excellent debut.
‘The Oath’ is a nice sample of how the first and second wave of Black Metal influenced Black Metal in South America. The 7″ EP format just works perfectly for these kind of releases, and considering that this is also the first time Oath of Malignancy material is available on wax, this presents a nice opportunity to add some more Black Metal from Ecuador to the collection.
