When I heard Lutemkrat had released an album called ‘The Last Survivor,’ I got excited.  This had nothing to do with the Brazilian propensity for playing descent Viking influenced Black Metal as if they are a bunch of displaced Scandinavians.  No, I was interested in Lutemkrat due to the cool Autopsy charged band Offal, for Tergis Zonato-AKA-Wolf Lutemkrat is a member of both bands.

‘The Last Survivor’ is like a movie sequel featuring no new characters and a slightly different plot than its predecessor.  I do not mean this as a negative assertion, and the reason is Lutemkrat has musical ardor and substance.  Guitars have a rebelliously uplifting fervor derived from mad tremolo riffage.  Actually, the entire album is guitar driven thereby charging songs with an ethereal feel like a glider riding the wind.  Guitar riffs have a gusty Geostrophic pulse resultant from reverb and distortion.  And repetition meted against creative riffing makes songs interesting enough for mesmerizing moments.  Pleasant too is the infusion of acoustic guitar, which never seems obtuse.  The outcome is a numinous almost romanticist aura that splendidly offsets the harshness of the electric guitar.  Vocals are patented harsh rasps aptly conveying valor, honor, and instances of deathly solitude as they pertain to the lyrics.  Sticking with the warring guitar melodies, bass contentedly plays the guitars root notes while programmed drums add capable rhythmic support.

Fans hoping for inventive music will be disappointed in Lutemkrat, but that does not mean ‘The Last Survivor’ is not worth the ca$h.  Every track has a moment of profundity and the guitar performance is highly creditable due to riff variances, acoustic guitar, and a somber refinement throughout the recording.  Overall, ‘The Last Survivor’ comes off as an LP tethered to the conventions of melodic Black Metal hinting at grandiose irreverence.  Hopefully the next CD from Lutemkrat will display an artist forging a more defined identity.  Until then, ‘The Last Survivor’ will be a gratifying album with reasonable replay value.

Rating:

|  7.5/10