UMUR "From Beyond to..." is an EP release by Finnish death/thrash metal act Sacred Crucifix. The EP was released through CFTN Distribution in March 2008. It bridges the gap between the band´s debut- and sophomore full-length studio albums "Aeon of Chaos" (2004) and "Shallow Grave" (2009). There´s been one lineup change since "Aeon of Chaos" (2004) as guitarist Sami Taimela has been replaced by Toni Kyllönen.

Stylistically Sacred Crucifix have changed their sound a slight bit since "Aeon of Chaos" (2004), as I´d say the pendulum has now swung more towards death metal than thrash metal, which wasn´t how the elements were distributed before. The early demo releases by Sacred Crucifix were brutal and raw thrash metal, which subsequently featured more and more death metal elements, and "Aeon of Chaos" (2004) was a really heavy, meaty, and aggressive thrash metal release featuring quite a few death metal traits. "From Beyond to..." is more purely a death metal release, and it´s a good mix of old school death metal and melodic death metal.

Featuring five tracks and a total playing time of 22:25 minutes you get quite a bit of quantity here considering that this is an EP release, and only opening track "The House" was later included on "Shallow Grave" (2009). Although I miss the aggressive thrash metal elements of the previous releases, Sacred Crucifix pull off playing this heavier and more melodic death metal style with both ease and conviction. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.