Album Review: Skeletal Remains – Fragments of the Ageless (Century Media Records)

As if 2024 didn’t feel brutal enough already, Skeletal Remains are back with a brand-new album. Called ‘Fragments of the Ageless’, it will be released on March 8th, 2024, via Century Media Records.

It takes a certain type of band to open their album with such a cacophony of noise, but that’s what Skeletal Remains do. Bringing forth an immediate crashing and smashing of drums and guitars, before the vocals arrive in scathing fashion. As far as setting the brutal bar goes, Relentless Appetite goes high. Skeletal Remains are back, and they’re sounding more feral and furious than ever.

Can you blame them though? 2020’s ‘The Entombment of Chaos’ was a beast of a record, but it landed during a period of worldwide chaos. Rather than dwell on that, the group have recovered and dug down deep to find even more hateful heaviness that is death metal through and through, but with layers of catchiness and technical proficiency. It’s not quite fair to call this the ultimate showcase of who Skeletal Remains are, because they never disappoint, but this is a mighty fine showcase of who the band is in 2024.

A band built on the bedrock of savagery, the foundations made of flesh and bone, and blood keeping everything held together. Cybernetic Harvest, To Conquer the Devout, Forever in Sufferance, and Verminous Embodiment… it’s track after track of unrelenting intensity. There should be no doubt in anyone’s mind that Skeletal Remains have upped this side of themselves, utilising their ingrained abilities to push heaviness to even greater levels. Yet, as appealing as all of this is, and it really f**king is, it’s the detail in each track that makes each one stand out.

We’re talking gargantuan riffs, mind-flaying solos, monstrous sounding percussion, and vocals that rip through flesh like a wild animal. The infectiousness of their hookier moments, the cleverness of the technical twists, and the non-stop bludgeoning approach makes this an unforgettable listen.

It’s so unforgiving though, that a short slice of horror-laden atmosphere like Ceremony of Impiety feels like relief. It’s momentary though, and Skeletal Remains follow that up with another chaotic slab of death metal wickedness in the form of Void of Despair. An apt title, even if the guitar soloing will fill your heart with joy, rather than misery.

How about Unmerciful though? The penultimate track is also the longest track on the album, and this s**t gets wild. Beating the mind in a bloody pulp with colossal drumming and sending searing guitars through what is left. This is an extended blast of viciousness, but also stands as a showcase of their efforts to add even more flair.

Does it work? Does a bear s**t in the woods?

No rest for the wicked though, and there’s one more bludgeoning experience to be had with …Evocation (The Rebirth). If there was any doubt remaining that this album is Skeletal Remains at their fiercest, this finale puts that to bed. They’re a band known for their ruthless approach to death metal, yet they continue to grow with each new release. As far as extreme metal goes, there’s little better than this album.

Skeletal Remains – Fragments of the Ageless Track Listing:

1. Relentless Appetite
2. Cybernetic Harvest
3. To Conquer the Devout
4. Forever in Sufferance
5. Verminous Embodiment
6. Ceremony of Impiety
7. Void of Despair
8. Unmerciful
9. …Evocation (The Rebirth)

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