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Nex Cvltvs is the debut release by the mysterious Italian black metal barbarians ZERVM who ply their trade grinding out raw and unashamed satanic bile that sounds not too dissimilar to a crossover between "De Mysteriis..."-era Mayhem and the depraved insanity of Beherit. The comparisons may sound promising, the music is somewhat decent at times but the reality is the material present on Nex Cvltvs leaves a lot to be worked upon.

Those who would consider themselves averse to black metal of the rough and under-produced variety would do well to escape now as Nex Cvltvs is in a nutshell just that, no pretence just ‘in your face' repulsiveness . The guitar riffs are ugly and repetitive, and while basic they are occasionally surprisingly catchy. The guitar along with the vocals are without doubt the strongest aspects of this album, although to be honest that isn't really saying much. The vocalist utilizes a demented low pitched growl not too far away from Attila which adds a certain primal element to the overall sound here.

It's the repetition and lack of variation that is the main problem that plagues Nex Cvltvs though; it's essentially a succession of songs where each one sounds exactly like the last, they all follow the same basic principle and pattern while generally remaining wholly unremarkable and samey save for the occasionally impressive riff. As stated, the production is also extremely shoddy, fair enough many bands playing this bestial style of black metal exploit this to their advantage but here the guitars are just too thin and there's almost no low end whatsoever.

Ok so it may be slightly repetitive and loose around the edges but fans of this style of maniacal, degrading and primitive black metal may find something here. It's not horrible by any means and just about wavers on the threshold of what I would consider listenable but I've heard a lot better and can easily see ZERVM becoming just another raw black metal act in a sea of others. They'll need to up their game next time around.