UMUR "Reveries..." is the 4th full-length studio album by French progressive death metal act Supuration. The album was released through Listenable Records in May 2015. "Reveries..." breaks a pretty interesting release cycle that Supuration has maintained on their first three albums, which all had 10 years between them. But since the band´s third full-length release "CU3E" was released in 2013, the cycle is now broken.

"Reveries..." is however not an album featuring freshly written material, but instead a release featuring eight re-recorded tracks which in their original form appeared on the 1990 "Official Rehearsal" demo, the 1990 "Sultry Obsession" EP, and the 1991 "Empheral Paradise" single. In addition to the "old" tracks, Supuration has also recorded three covers by Paradise Lost, Twisted Sister, and Anthrax for the 48:10 minutes long album.

The original material is old school death metal with a semi-progressive twist. Relatively intelligible growling vocals placed high in the mix, good rhythmic variation, and overall a fair amount of brutality. A couple of thrashy sections are also featured in the music. Regarding those sections the sound production is a slight problem though, as the palm-muted rhythm guitars sound very thin and muffled. It´s too bad because other than on those sections the sound production is relatively well sounding. The semi-progressive tag is mostly a result of the sometimes unconventional song structures, and a few dissonant sounding riffs. Both features Supuration would develop upon on their subsequent releases. This is predominantly old school death metal though.

The three cover tracks are all of a decent quality. "Shattered" by Paradise Lost is delivered very true to the original, which is alright but nothing too exciting. "Among the Living" by Anthrax, is well performed but it´s a track that sounds slightly odd with growling vocals. Supuration has picked a perfect Twisted Sister track to cover though, as "The Beast" is delivered with commanding brutality. Maybe it´s the relatively slow pace and anthemic nature of the track, which suits Supuration so well, but to my ears it´s THE highlight of the album. It´s of an equally high quality as when Benediction covered "Forged in Fire" by Anvil.

While the overall quality of the material is relatively high, there are still moments where I´m thinking the original material could have been a bit more memorable. Taking into consideration when these tracks were originally written, they are actually pretty mature, but compared to Supuration´s later output, the original material on "Reveries..." doesn´t quite hold up. Still a 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating isn´t all wrong.

UMUR "Incubation" is the 2nd full-length studio album by French progressive doom/death metal act Supuration. The album was released through Holy Records in November 2003. It´s been 10 years since the release of the band´s debut full-length studio album "The Cube (1993)", but the band has in the intermediate years busied themselves with (among other things) their other project S.U.P.

The debut album was a really interesting mix of progressive Voivod dissonance and (early) Paradise Lost doom/death metal and that musical style is continued on "Incubation". The dark sci-fi atmosphere is intact too. There´s the occasional goth influenced clean vocal part featured in the music too (and other clean vocal styles) in addition to the predominantly growling vocals, but that was also the case on the debut. In fact it´s pretty amazing how consistent the band are after 10 years. Both when it comes to the musical style and when it comes to the quality of the music. The compositions are adventurous and intriguing, but not as such technical. The band emphasize atmosphere over technical playing, which also results in their music being progressively structured because that´s what the material calls for, rather than being progressive for the sake of it. The lyrics are a concept sci-fi story and all tracks have months in their subtitles to signal a time span of the events taking place in the story.

The sound production is sligthly sharper and more detailed than the case was on "The Cube (1993)" album, but also less dark and gritty, which I personally found rather charming about the debut. Overall "Incubation" is a great sophomore album by Supuration though, and fans of "The Cube (1993)" should not hesitate before purchasing this one. To the more casual listener I´d say that Supuration´s sound is so twisted and different from the norm, that it´s probably very much an aquired taste and therefore a listen before purchase is adviced. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "The Cube" is the debut full-length studio album by French death/doom metal act Supuration. The album was originally released in 1993 through Reincarnate/Danceteria. Holy Records re-released "The Cube" in 1998 with three bonus tracks. This time under the S.U.P. monicker (the band´s side-project). So it´s safe to say "The Cube" has quite the unusual release history.

The music on the album is very unconventional sounding progressive death/doom metal with a mystical sci-fi theme. I´m not sure I would call it avant garde, but it sure is different from most other death metal releases I´m familiar with. There are brutal growls alright and some heavy riffing too, but other than that you´re in for quite a ride with this one. Supuration generally focus on atmosphere over brutality and most guitar riffs on the album are not brutal, downtuned and raw. Instead I hear quite a few influences from psychadelic rock (early Pink Floyd) and progressive rock/metal in the way the guitars are played and also in the varied rhythm arrangements. The song structures are adventurous and provide the music with a surprise element. In addition to the growling vocals there are some futuristic sounding clean vocals on the album too. The clean vocals remind me slightly of early nineties Voivod. Actually quite a few elements on the album remind me of Voivod. It´s not completely wrong to say that "Nothingface (1989)"-era Voivod and "Gothic (1991)"-era Paradise Lost are valid references.

The sound production is delightfully raw but not in a lo-fi way, so you´re fully able to hear everything that is played, which is great because these guys are skilled musicians. It´s in the songwriting department that they really excel though. "The Cube" is a very original sounding album and Supuration combine all their influences seamlessly into a sound of their own. Things never sound forced or out of place and the band are just so full of adventurous ideas that this is an album that is entertaining and twists conventions throughout. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Cu3e" is the 3rd full-length studio album by French progressive doom/death metal act Supuration. The album was released through Listenable Records in February 2013. It´s been 10 years since the release of the band´s 2nd full-length studio album "Incubation (2003)", which itself was curiously enough released 10 years after the release of the band´s debut full-length studio album "The Cube (1993)". It appears that Supuration have settled for a 10 year release cycle, but of course many of the intermediate years have been spend on (among other things) their other progressive extreme metal project S.U.P., so it´s not like they haven´t been active.

Considering the fact that there are 10 years between the band´s album releases it´s actually amazing how consistent in style and quality all three albums are, because "Cu3e" pretty much continues where "Incubation (2003)" left off. The band have tweaked their sound enough for "Cu3e" to stand out as an individual sounding release though but the band´s take on progressive death metal is intact. It´s still a rather alien sounding type of metal featuring both death, doom, goth and progressive metal elements. The riffs are often dissonant and Voivod is as always a valid reference, but the Paradise Lost (early) influence is still there too. The material aren´t overtly complex, but neither is it instantly accessible. "Cu3e" does require more than one spin to sink in.

Supuration are seasoned musicians and everything is delivered with conviction and passion. The vocals are both growling and clean, but mostly growling. The sound production is powerful and suits the music well. I guess the tracks could have been slightly more catchy, which would have meant that they would have stood out more from each other, but that´s about the only issue I have with "Cu3e". Otherwise it´s a great album with a great atmosphere and if they maintain this quality level, I guess I can live with waiting another 10 years for the band´s next album to be released. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

optisailor2002 France's Supuration is easily one of the most experienced extreme metal bands out of the country, having formed back in 1989 and already gone through numerous name changes, and along with these changes, evolution in their style of metal. 2011 sees Xtreem Music releasing a compilation of the earliest demos that the band has released both under the moniker of Supuration and Etsicroxe, in the form of Back from the Crematory.

The compilation opens with the band's Sultry Obsession MCD, with Hypertrophy/Sordid and Outrageous Emanations introducing listeners with an acoustic guitar line before breaking into a dark and heavy chugging death metal section then a fast, trem-picked section as the band begins their onslaught proper, with Ludovic's deep growls. Faster sections on songs like these almost bring in an old school Swedish death metal feel, especially with the abrasive production quality. The atmospheric aspects of the music are not neglected, with various sound effects that are present at the background, shrouding the music in a dark and heavy atmosphere, and along with the guitar solos on the track bring out the doom metal elements that the band has included in their songwriting. Sultry Obsession further makes use of background keyboards to help to reinforce the dark and atmospheric aspects of the song. The guitar wielding duo of Fabrice and Ludovic also constantly engage in duelling solos, and at times almost remind listeners of old school thrash metal bands with their fingerwork and the play on the whammy bar.

The Official Rehearsal MC opens in a quirky manner, with what sounds like a carnival at the background with the almost happy and light-hearted mood, but is quickly dashed as Avoid the Contamination begins, displaying the very first materials written by the band under Supuration. The production quality is markedly raw, but this does not compromise the quality of the songs written, and compared to the songs on Sultry Obsession, the songs seem to be more straightforward death metal, with songs being faster than the first three tracks, what with the shred-friendly guitar solos that are included on tracks like Avoid the Contamination. The inclusion of more mid-paced tempo and few really slow and heavy moments displays their transition from a band playing thrash influenced (on Etsicroxe) to doom influenced death metal.

Etsicroxe's Haunted MC begins with a theatrical intro, and this time round, the production becomes even more raw than before. The increased speed and ferocity of the band's material under Etsicroxe is immediately noticeable, as the band blasts on with reckless abandon right from the first track No Escape to the Chaos. The drumming is frantic, and the raw energy that seeps out from the band is infectious. The vocals on Etsicroxe lean more towards a higher-pitched, almost black metal-styled shriek, compared to the monstrous growls on the Supuration stuff. The guitar solos on these tracks are also more chaotic, with lesser focus on the structure and increased attention given to the number of notes that can be squeezed in. The band's inexperience is also obvious on these tracks, with songs like Damnations containing some awkward moments, and the drums even sounding slightly out of pace. Riffings on tracks like Damnation almost sound like it could come off a Slayer Reign in Blood era record with a tinge of death metal, made even more so with the speed that the band tends to travel at.

The last 9 tracks are live tracks of Etsicoxe's Haunted demo, and a few more tracks, and displays the band's tightness as a unit, unlike the numerous messy moments that were present on the previous demo tracks, and the tracks here serve as more enjoyable and coherent versions of their studio material. Furthermore, songs like Into the Crematorium displays some more of the band's influences, with riffs that are reminiscent of Venom's Black Metal. The vocals here also lean more towards a growl that one would hear on the Supuration material, and could possibly mark the beginning of the band's transition from Etsicroxe to Supuration.

Overall Back from the Crematory is a good introduction to newer fans of Supuration to the band's early history, and listeners of death metal curious about early death metal out of France. A word of caution though, the overall extremely raw and primitive production of the compilation could put listeners used to more clean and polished production off.

Originally written for http://www.heavymetaltribune.com/