Sanzu play an intense form of death metal that straddles the line between the new and the old-school death. Featuring former members of Perth heavyweights Malignant Monster, Sanzu released their debut EP, Painless earlier this year to much acclaim. To keep the momentum going, they have quickly followed it up with Heavy Over The Home.
Heavy Over The Home is a truly malevolent slab of death metal that can’t easily be pigeon-holed into any particular subset of the genre. The guitar tone shows a little bit of a Gojira influence, and there are definitely plenty of modern-style riffs throughout, particularly on tracks like “Those Who Sleep In The East” and “The Chill.” That being said, Sanzu also have plenty of traditional sounding tunes that take their cues from bands like Morbid Angel or Deicide, as you can hear on “Ubiety.” There is plenty of atmosphere throughout Heavy Over The Home, and even hints of melody, making this a pretty well-rounded album. The guitars aren’t the only exciting thing about Sanzu’s sound either; vocally they are all over the map, from deep death growls to higher-pitched screaming similar to Meshuggah.
Title track “Heavy Over The Home” is my favorite song on the record; this is simply because it ties everything great about this album together. Plodding, nightmarish riffs start the track off, and build up into some of the angriest, most explosive riffs of the entire record, reminding me (again) of early Meshuggah material. This track also highlights the excellent production, with layered vocals, plenty of low-end bass and 6-string guitar work, and loud drums, without a single instrument overpowering the others.
I’m pleasantly surprised with Heavy Over The Home, and I suggest you give it a spin if you like a good sonic pummeling along the lines of Meshuggah and Gojira, mixed with a healthy dose of old-school death metal.