I'm listing this as "black/death", but really Apes are masters at blending black metal, grindcore and hardcore as well some death metal as well after listening to Penitence. Lots of bands mix those (or some of those) genres and come out sounding messy (in a bad way) and unfocused, but Apes know how to do this right. I'm no fan of hardcore and I only take grindcore in small doses, and yet I can't get enough of this stuff here. I did have previous exposure to the band when I saw them live a couple of years ago, not knowing who they were, and I walked out having purchased all the music they had for sale at the merch table.

Crunchy, razor-sharp, meaty, screechy guitar work is the most noticeable thing here. It'll get you headbanging, air-guitaring, slamming into walls, the works. The blackened atmosphere comes off sounding eerie as hell and it's all over the album, making it feel like an occult nightmare that you can't get out of. The vocals are harsh screams that are even more nightmarish than the music, just adding to the insane atmosphere. There's kind of a doomy vibe going on here as well, giving not only a sense of hopelessness but, coupled with the blackened atmosphere and the vocal work, there's this sense of an overwhelming rage that just grabs you. Long story short, if you're pissed off, this is not what's going to calm you down. :) I'd say fans of the likes of Anaal Nathrakh might be interested in this. It's not as crazy and all over the place, but there's a similar mix of genres, and it's done well.