EP Review: Murtenscythe – Vodyanoy

Murtenscythe – Vodyanoy
March 4th, 2023
Progressive / Melodic Death Metal
Independently Released
Montreal, Quebec, Canada

I have a strange relationship with Murtenscythe’s music. Ages ago when I still lived in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador some friends of mine and I paid a visit to Fred’s Records, the local record shop in the downtown area. While flipping through the various CDs I happened upon a poorly packed orange envelope containing a CD inside with the only indication of the artist being a sticker of the band slapped onto the envelope and the tracks listed in marker. I remember driving around with my pals listening to the CD, and while some of them who weren’t metalheads thought it was “a Metallica ripoff”, I actually thought it was pretty sick. Years later when I moved to Montreal and got involved with the metal scene here, I ended up running into drummer Jimmy Antle and guitarist Phil Eason through their other band Guttrot, and it was only after that that I found out they were the same folks from Murtenscythe. Small world, huh?

Anyways, that was then, and this is now, and now the band has a brand new EP out, Vodyanoy, which is the band’s first proper release in 10 years. For those who don’t know, a vodyanoy is a creature from Slavic folklore and mythology said to be an evil water spirit whose favourite pass-time is drowning humans. That’s an appropriate title for this release seeing as how most of the songs on here are about fantastical scenarios, sorcerers, demons, and the like.

What immediately struck me about this EP is just how complex these songs are. I remember Murtenscythe’s demo material being much more thrashy and rooted in standard death metal material, but these songs really show how far these musicians have come in the past ten years. These songs go through so many different movements and really mess around with time signatures and when different parts stop and start. Each of these tracks is written in such a way as to always keep you guessing while simultaneously making you want more. Truly this EP is downright progressive when it comes to songwriting, which is something I didn’t expect going into it at all.

The guitars on here, provided by Eason as well as Sabe Page, with bass duties handled by Will Gauthier, are some of the best in the melodic death metal genre I’ve heard in a hot minute. The opening riff of “Demons” might be one of my favourite riffs of the year, and we’re barely three months into 2023. Seriously, Eason and Page have outdone themselves on this recording. Every song, from “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” to “Demons” to “DHMO” is chock full of absolutely monstrous riffs that blur the lines between progressive metal, melodic death metal, and stoner metal almost seamlessly. It’s like these guys took the Viking elements of Amon Amarth, mixed them with the mountainous elements of Mastodon and the jazz-prog elements of later Death, to form a devilish homunculus of the three. That’s to say nothing of Gauthier who is an absolute wizard on the bass. You can hear him doing all sorts of crazy fills in the background of this thing, and there are a few moments where the guitars get quiet and you can bare witness to the full extent of his abilities on the low end.

Antle’s drumming is also nothing to scoff at. I’ve watched Jimmy perform in multiple bands over the years, and can attest to this guy being nothing short of a monster behind the kit. I have to say though, out of all the projects Jimmy has been involved with in the time I’ve known him, none of them show off his drumming capabilities quite to the same extent as Murtenscythe. This EP is chock full of all sorts of complicated drum sections involving weirdly timed rolls on the snare and toms as well as oddly placed moments where beats spill over from bar to bar, never ending or beginning exactly when you think they’re going to. There are all sorts of tempo switch-ups and bizarre punch-ins with the cymbals as well as switch-ups from blast beats into fast punk beats and slower, heavier, plodding beats that cave your skull in.

The production on this thing is also fantastic. Mixed my Gauthier himself, the EP was mastered by Sage Audio in Nashville, Tennessee, and the work that both of these parties put into this release shows. There’s a certain humility to this recording that is hard to describe. The recording doesn’t feel overblown or overproduced. While all of the instruments are clean and present in the mix and nobody is fighting for presence, there’s still a grit to it. The guitars have bite. The drums feel like you’re right there next to them. The vocals feel rough in a good way, like Eason and, of course, the guest vocals provided by The Lord Fez Khan of Double Cross (ex-Crosstitution), are hideous monsters like the demons they’re singing about, fighting to be loosened from their immortal prison.

While it may come as no surprise that I think highly of the music made by people who I know personally, I’ve never been shy about critiquing the music of my friends. I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt that this EP is incredible, regardless of who was behind the making of it. This thing came out nowhere and shocked me by its quality. When it comes to melodic death metal I’m pretty picky with what releases I afford my time to, and I’m grateful I decided to check this one out. In a world where Amon Amarth has released the same album 5 times at this point and Arch Enemy is basically the McDonald’s of “extreme” metal, Murtenscythe are exactly the breath of fresh air we need. Don’t miss out on this one, and if you get the opportunity to see them live, don’t miss out on that either.

Final Verdict: 5/5
Flawless

Favourite Tracks:
“The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”
“Demons”
“DHMO”

~ Akhenaten