Sætaier: Underworld Oath (2024, Tribulación Productions)

Sætaier is a band based in Barcelona, Spain that was formed in 2023 and has members from Spain, Italy and Colombia in its lineup. Its five members are experienced musicians of the genre who have participated in a multitude of extreme metal projects to date, giving life to this debut album with the following line-up: vocalist Sanguinem (Bloodhymns, Endeathed), guitarists Sorath (ex-Demolittion Trippa, ex- Euphorbia Mortus) and Endead (Endeathed, ex-Demolittion Trippa, ex-Odio), bassist Morkar (Mitrofanx, Udûn, ex-Reticulate) and drummer Labelua (ex-Occultum Lapidem, ex-Apostles of Perversion, ex-Atrexial) .

Chaos Serpent starts with Devourer Of Gods after a sinister introduction where fire takes center stage accompanied by percussive rhythms before the band goes into action. When everything lights up with the first blast beats by Labelua, it is time to charge with all the cavalry and take no prisoners. It is a pleasure to enjoy a rhythmic base as solid as the one that Sætaier proposes throughout the entire album, led by the aforementioned drummer Labelua and bassist Morkar. The guitars of Endead and Sorath shine in their entirety throughout the almost forty minutes that the album lasts, taking on a substantial role in songs like Chaos Serpent where in their calmer parts they manage to balance the aggressiveness of the riffs with narrower and more sinister passages.

The second side of the album is separated by the instrumental Apep and as a whole it does not pale at all compared to the first four songs that give life to Chaos Serpent, with War Goddess perhaps being the one that shines the most throughout the final stretch of the album. Sanguinem’s voice does an exceptional job throughout the entire album, although from my point of view it achieves its maximum potential in The Great Rebel and Destroyer’s Emanation, the latter being one of the singles that the band had already shown previously.

Chaos Serpent is a direct and forceful album that knows which path it should follow. Its members manage to capture the essence of their proposal in eight songs that are initially simple but hide great secrets that are revealed with each listen, perhaps one of the greatest successes of this kind of bands is the ability to make you discover something new every time you listen to them. It should be said that the addition of a dark atmosphere in the background probably made with keyboards or synthesizers gives an additional layer of depth to an album that I hope does not go unnoticed. Their proposal already caught my attention when they presented themselves to the world accompanying Darvaza, I hope that this new community of musicians dedicated body and soul will give us new releases on a regular basis with the quality of Chaos Serpent.