The philosophical quandary of innovation vs consistency rages on. For every Opeth or Blut Aus Nord, who only know how to move forward, you get the Nile’s and Internal Bleeding’s, who believe in doing their thing again, but hopefully bigger and better than the last time.1 Formerly a two-man project turned solo-project Desecresy has toiled away in the catacombs of Finland since 2009. Spearheaded by founding member Tommi Grönqvist, sole instrumentalist who also took up vocals on The Mortal Horizon onward, this outfit has offered an unflinchingly gloomy, chug-heavy breed of doomy death metal. The Secret of Death is the gentleman’s ninth offering, and if you came here expecting radical innovation, you didn’t read the genre description correctly.
In the spirit of much great Finnish death, the name of the game is atmosphere. Much of the Desecresy blueprint sounds like the long-lost offspring of Rippikoulu, with a heavy emphasis on thunderous chugs and vocals emanating somewhere from below the Earth’s crust. While the drumming has plenty of BPM shifts, the chug-centric focus gives the illusion of The Secret of Death never quite escaping being a mid-tempo offering, which might thrill some and disappoint others. Actual moments of contrast appear for aid, peppering “By Slowing the Vortex of Time” and complimenting the expected belligerence in “Ancient Timbre of Demise.” The occasional spooky synths appear to help divide movements (“Crypthymn”, “Vanishing Existence”) and emphasize a transitional flow of ideas, though much like death itself, all roads lead to the same destination.
Not all those roads come with the same scenic route, however. There are two flourishes to elevate this particular Secret, and I’m sure you noticed at least one as soon as you hit the embed. This album sounds like it was produced by Mortician in the best possible way, with the organic drums mixed with such stone-age glee that the bass kicks boom across every forest cleaving downbeat section. Tommi’s vocals transcend “guttural” into tectonic-plate-altering vibrations reminiscent of Putrevore, but less moist and far more menacing and impenetrable. The second flourish is a real penchant for leads that straddle the line of both spooky and catchy, with a tone crystalline and bright but with melodies of doom and horror. Sprinkled across the album, they give a reprieve from the crypt excavating, grave violating assaults with horrific beauty (“Ancient Timbre of Demise”, “Gorge of the Dead”) without ruining the carefully crafted atmospheric theatrics within.
While The Secret of Death wields its toolkit well enough that one can’t quite call it homogeneous, it should be admitted that not every cut carries the same degree of ferment in the offal discharge. “Ancient Timbre…” and “Summoned With Necrolunar Telepathy” feature intros that are too similar to each other in approach, and “Summoned…” flirts with a Bolt Thrower vision but rides an empty lead far too many times to maintain its impact. Other than the closing power of “Vanishing Existence”, the leads can’t compete with the heights of memorability set by “Gorge of the Dead”. And yet, these quibbles are hardly deal breakers, as the relatively succinct 42-minute runtime allows Desecresy to avoid outstaying their welcome; an important trait, given the sheer bleakness on display. Additionally, alternating the traditional slow, doomed-out prolonged note stylings in some leads with melodic interpositions carrying more speed and virtuosity makes for excellent distinction when they appear, successfully keeping the listener’s attention.
To the surprise of what I hope is no one in particular, Desecresy have landed firmly on the “consistency” side of the deathly spectrum. A lovely hodgepodge of chunky soup with Finnish entrails and an unusual take on the Mortician broth has given The Secret of Death a good identity while lacking anything approaching the realm of surprise. A few more cuts featuring the quality of the bookending tracks could have the caliber to assemble a real worm-infested monstrosity, and I’ll certainly be keeping an eye out for them in the future. For now, we can all use more death in our lives, and if you’re on the prowl, I’ve got a Secret I’d like to share with you…
Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Xtreem Music
Website: Album Bandcamp
Releases Worldwide: May 21st, 2026
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