FROM THE DEPTHS
Elysium LP SPLATTER

HELLS HEADBANGERS is proud to reissue FROM THE DEPTHS’ cult second album, Elysium, on CD and vinyl LP formats. Hailing from the fertile Cleveland metal scene, FROM THE DEPTHS were very much a product of the mid '90s. Existing between 1994 and 2000, FROM THE DEPTHS featured ex-Blood of Christ guitarist Matt Sorg (also of HELLS HEADBANGERS stalwarts SHED THE SKIN) and fittingly played a form of metal that was somewhere between blackened death and deathened black, depending on the song. In 2016, HELLS HEADBANGERS reissued the band’s self-titled debut album from 1996 on vinyl, and now the label turns its attention to another long-overdue reissue of FROM THE DEPTHS’ catalog: their second – and final – album, Elysium. To understand the unique, time-locked charms of 1998's Elysium, it’s imperative to note the preceding Bereavement mini-album from the year before (which is also slated for long-overdue reissue by HELLS HEADBANGERS concurrent with this one). On that mini, FROM THE DEPTHS retooled their lineup: scene veteran Duane Morris (Decrepit, ex-EMBALMER, NUNSLAUGHTER, ex-INCANTATION et. al.) joined on bass, and Rob Molzan replaced one "Malcolm Judas Anthony" (AKA metal legend Jim Konya, RIP) on vocals. And while the songwriting followed a similar schematic of crunch, twist, surge and stomp as From the Depths, Bereavement was done with diabolical abandon and an even-more-epic flair. Thus does Elysium carry that torch further. The keyboards of Brian Boston continue to have a prominent role, while the guitars of Matt Sorg and Brian Bertam remain just as melodic but fully reside in the blackened death metal realm. As such, their riffing here gets busier and more fleet-fingered, exhibiting exceptional chops every step of the way, and the songwriting takes more twisted, labyrinthine routes. Emotion is as heavy as on the shorter-length predecessor, but a sense of mania earmarks this second album in the best possible way. On the whole, then, Elysium very much sounds like 1998: blackened-to-a-crisp melodeath that possesses well-timed touches of synth that alternately leads and colors. And it holds up impossibly well today, capping a legacy that sadly ended with this second album. Long out of print on CD, Elysium will finally also see release on vinyl for the first time ever. The past is alive, FROM THE DEPTHS!