Release Date: January 17th 2025. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: CD/DD
SARBERUS - Track Listing:
1.Even Against Sorrow 05:51
2.Wearied Repose 08:49
3.Under The Weight 04:19
4.Zimrah 23 06:10
5.Senescent Ruction 07:01
6.Lamentation 06:55
7.The Wilderness Feeds You 04:43
8.Mezmernaut 03:58
Members
Michael "Maliciouz" Muckow - Guitars, Bass & Drums
Review
SARBARUS is the new album from one-man outfit Maliciouz who operates with a bleak and desolate Scorched Desert mandate with elements of Funeral Doom, Sludge and Stoner Metal on this record. The sound is constantly bleak and quite oppressive especially compared to their last record DIZEAZED released back in July 2024. There’s a subtle Psychedelic and Progressive style appearing throughout the album but it’s mostly full of nightmarish soundscapes which is boosted by the constant use of down-tuned fuzzy guitars that have a demonic Sludgy appearance to them.
Maliciouz plays music inspired by the likes of BONGRIPPER and Electric Wizard with a slow-paced foreboding GLOOM & DOOM sound can be wholly melodic and emotionally draining at times especially on tracks such as Even Against Sorrow, Wearied Repose and Under The Weight perfectly setting the scene. The record does have a certain LO-FI energy appearing within the production values which gives SARBARUS a slight sleazy grindhouse feel which should resonate with the underground DOOM METAL community but everything still sounds incredibly LOUD and highly polished at the same time.
The record isn’t the fastest style of music and if you want catchy amounts of riff-centric grooves then you better look elsewhere as Michael Muckow (the creative mastermind behind the album) prefers his music to be played with long drawn out instrumental passages with moments of surreal Psychedelic aggression appearing when you least expect it.
Other standout tracks include: Zimrah, Senescent Ruction, Lamentation and Mezmernaut that all show a wide array of different Funeral Doom grooves with a sense of fear and anxiety creeping in spectacular fashion. SARBARUS is quite a grimy record which Maliciouz doesn’t shy away from even in the closing seconds of the album, there’s still some downbeat sounds that leave you wanting to hear more.
This is a superb record from the underground scene and I can’t recommend this highly enough.
Words by Steve Howe
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