Year of release: 2018
Label: Memento Mori
Rating: 8,5 / 10
A new release from the Spanish label which does not betray it's favorite style, giving preference to heavy, gloomy and sticky albums. "The Chthonic Rituals" is a debut full-length of the French band that probably loves Lovecraft and INCANTATION. Although I did not find direct references to the Lovecraftian creations on the album, the influence is obvious: ancient deities, cosmic abysses, monoliths, strange creatures roaming deep in the subterranead darkness. All this is served in a sound that embodies the most extreme forms of Death and Doom Metal. No doubts that the musicians have very thick strings, drum membranes and vocal cords, because the sound is insanely heavy. It is easy to feel all the greatness of the images that ATAVISMA invokes with their music.
Although the album adheres to a certain mood and spirit, it is quite diverse in terms of tempo. You do not have time to look back, as slow flows of black lava turn into a cannonade of blast beats. The vocalist works strictly on one note, growling something unintelligible and frightening. Excellent work on the overall atmosphere from acoustic and solo parts side. For a long time I have not heard anything so gloomy, cold and archaic. Excellent!
English (UK) 
Крыўская