Playing a black metal with structural tendencies that border on death metal, Necrophor delivers mid-paced songs grounded in orthodoxy in terms of technique and construction but taking the listener to unexpected places within this expression. The mid-paced characteristic of Exterminatus should be emphasized because this allows the band some leniency in regards to the types of riffs it will use. We find a very few chug-based moments that are just enough to serve as a neck between sections and only as accompaniment for measured time spans. We also find the typical moving minor chords that have become a staple of black metal. Strummed sections, slight tremolos, picked chords also make an appearance in this release.
Necrophor’s composition capabilities cannot be overstated in regards to the way all these techniques are integrated as hues in the artists arsenal. Too often do we see bands falling and depending on a particular technique to automatically provide the music with all it needs. Necrophor, on the other hand, are using the techniques to mold a vision that has been captured in the mind’s eye first. It isn’t only a matter of planning and intention, the technical capabilities of the band as arrangers are absolutely necessary for the elements in these songs to blend as they do. Exterminatus represents an excellent example of a band creating music inside to outside, not only because of the way these techniques were brought together to shape the music, but because they also seem to revolve around one point, a mood that changes character naturally and never too abruptly. A release that will definitely fly over most heads because of the production style not fulfilling brutality requirements and not being frost-bitten enough, or for the musical style not being close enough to a clone of a classic or a complete trashing of influences, Exterminatus is one of the most artistically accomplished releases I have had the pleasure to listen to from 2015.
