ROTTING CHRIST - The Heretics VINYL

Greece does not get nearly enough credit for its contribution to black metal, and Rotting Christ have spent over three decades making sure that oversight is noticed. The Heretics, their 2019 full-length, is the sound of a band who have absolutely nothing left to prove deciding to prove it anyway.

Where some of their peers leaned into raw orthodoxy, Rotting Christ have always threaded in atmosphere, melody, even a certain ancient gravitas that makes their records feel like ritual rather than performance. The Heretics doubles down on that, big dramatic riffs underpinned by Sakis Tolis's commanding presence, the whole thing feeling less like a metal album and more like a ceremony you've accidentally walked into. For anyone who follows the darker end of extreme music through Emperor, Satyricon, or Marduk, this is essential shelf space.

Black vinyl pressing with 4-page insert. Origin: Greece. Fans of: Samael, Emperor, Satyricon, Belphegor, Immortal, Marduk.