By virtue of releasing a first album BloodShedd established themselves as a preeminent band in the Filipino metal underground. In this part of the world where each year only a score of demos emerge from the scene, followed by a handful of EP’s, and ultimately an album or two, few can scrape any glory by doing metal. Those who achieve the latter feat earn little else but passing distinction, after all, there isn’t a market for whichever genre here and people have short memories.

When BloodShedd came out with ‘Eye of the Pessimist’ in 2007 after two years of on-again-off-again studio work the buzz it generated among specific circles was enough to deem it a critical success. A respectable launch party and intense stretches of weekend gigs also helped solidify their reputation. The music on this disc—which lies branded with a pentagram inside the burning red case—is Death Metal in the vein of At the Gates.

‘Slaughter of the Soul’ exerts a powerful influence on the band’s delivery primarily because it’s just so goddamn furious. Take the opener for example, ‘AD 36’ doesn’t bother with any fancy intros or a soft beginning; it just hammers away from the first second onwards. The same goes for most songs as this is a debut from a band that spent a decade paying their dues with barely any returns, so the music sounds very fresh. You can even say BloodShedd’s excruciating hunger for recognition made them push the envelope on their first outing. Jojo Book, a frontman who wears a custom designed BloodShedd jersey onstage together with false vampire fangs, delivers the predominantly english lyrics (the last song is in the vernacular, Tagalog) as if he were spitting flames. You can imagine him gargling coals inside his mouth. Chops-wise the band is tight, the twin guitars from Bong Ecat and Bike Vinas-- who uses a headless axe and goes onstage in a pink t-shirt-- unleash boiling duels and a token jazz breakdown is crammed into the frenzy.

These guys are steeped in numerous influences, which explains why a saxophone is used on one song courtesy of another local band, Cog, whose own music has been constantly evolving over the years. There are also guest appearances on ‘Beyond Definition’ by End of Man, a Thrash band who’ll be releasing their debut exclusively in the Philippines late this year. Whether you’re just curious regarding the brand of Metal produced in the Philippines or hunger for a no-frills Death Metal assault, ‘Eye of the Pessimist’ is the album for you.