Album Review: Moluchtas - Telos Terminus
Reviewed by Paul Hutchings
There’s limited information about this Belgian black/death Metal outfit, even on the usually reliable Metal Archives who reissue two previous E.P.'s under the banner 'Telos Terminus'. Described on other sites as an “entity”, one can only assume that this mysterious outfit is either the work of a solo artist or another non-disclosed metal unit hidden behind their art.
Moluchtas released both previous E.P.s that comprise this maelstrom of darkness in 2021, with ‘Into Nothingness’ released in May and ‘The Inexorable Imprecation of Being following in November of the same year. In ‘Telos Terminus’ we get all the songs that are featured on those previous releases in one place.
We kick off with the dark and demonic overtures of ‘Surrender to the Void’ which has a chaotic and devilish mix of tremolo riffs, screaming guitar work, huge sludgy riffs, and harrowing echoes. Vocals are low, growled and intimidating. The overall feeling is of nihilistic coldness. More gruesome rolling black metal cascades on ‘The One That Defiles the Earth’. With that title you know it isn’t going to be a love song and it draws you screaming into another spine-chilling journey which intensifies despite the slower pace. The low-key roars stretch languidly across the track, but it’s anything but relaxed as the two releases merge in a violent maelstrom of blackened death. This may become a ride like no other.
Clutching your breath, the horror of the unfolding events finally becomes a reality. It is of course, too late to escape and all you can do is allow the inevitable to take its course. Further beasts are unleashed. ‘Damnations Dawning’ erupts in a sprawling stream of audio vomit, the Blasphemic utterings rage and the downtuned guitars scream like banshees. A tsunami of blackened riffage rages in an unstoppable flood. It’s relentless, but rather than fight it, slowly the darkness wraps its cold entrails around the throat. Embracing the clutches, you slowly succumb to ‘The Quintessence of Emptiness’, the howling winds cut to the bone, but it still entices. You last until the finale, the nine and a half minutes of ‘The Sun of Malediction’, which explodes in another ferociously driven wall of cranial splitting aural abuse.
If you can crawl, bruised and bleeding from this encounter, you’ll likely demand another ride. For despite its sheer pandemonium and visceral edges, this is an album that for some strange reason simply draws you in. Suffice, Moluchtas is a sinister entity. Dare you take the plunge?
