Oh man, looks like we have a new contender to the throne of the incredibly long song titles. It's hard not to look forward to spinning an album that has track titles like "Necrosadistic Masturbation Upon the Mary's Disemboweled Corpse". The fact that anyone used the word "necrosadistic" at all is impressive on its own merit.

With their dizzying riffs and abrupt breaks, Poland's Anima Damnata really remind me of someone, particularly in the deep growling vocals. Dammit, I wish I could figure it out. Straying away from the sound that other countrymen seem to have popularized, Anima Damnata have more of a mid/late-nineties American death metal sound. They're not exactly technical, however it feels like they could outplay a lot of bands tackling the ultra-brutal sound. There's a clear black metal influence on a few of the tracks, like on "Antichristian Nuclear Shitlust", where the band puts the pummeling death metal on the backburner to break into a well-placed part with full strummed chords and staccato picking underneath. Quite a change from their unusual stuttering riffs and Krisiun-style soloing. And one thing I will say is that Master of depraved dreaming and Emperor of the Black Abyss the Great Lord Hziulquoigmzhah Cxaxukluth vel Necrolucas is quite proficient with his drumwork, while the skilled basswork of Nocturnal Harvester of Christian Lambs and a Great Messenger of Subliminal Satanic Messages is found actually enunciating certain passages in the music, unlike in so many bands of this style.

For being so exceptionally brutal, Anima Damnata have a great talent of being able to stake claim to a bit of originality. "Is It Worth Waiting For The Death Call" begins with an almost hypnotic and truly off-beat riff, full of artificial harmonics. As I said, they're not all that technical, but they're ingenious in their approach and play with a lot of flare that's almost unseen in this style. There's a lot you who might miss on the first few spins, like the uncharacteristically melodic guitarwork at the beginning of "Satanation" and the strangely produced break towards the end. They're just little things that make you cock your head and nod your head in approval.

Unfortunately enough, the band's strength is also their weakness, again proving that thirty-plus minutes of continual battery, no matter how talented it is, might get on someone's nerves. But whatever - your average brutal death metal fanatic will find Agonizing Journey Through the Burning Universe and Transcendental Ritual of Transfiguration a highly rewarding listen.