Tech-Death Tuesday: BLEAK FLESH Levels Up On "Caput Primum"

Greetings tech fiends, it's that time of the week again. Before we dive into today's column, here's the usual weekly reminder that if you're looking to find even more sick bands, you can do so here.

In 2019, Chile-based technical death metallers Bleak Flesh released their finest work to date, …And Save Us From Silence. One which we helped launch a guitar playthrough for at the time in support of its release. Next year the band will drop their third album, and we've got the exclusive premiere of its first single, "Caput Primum".

Line-up-wise, the band remains the same on "Caput Primum" as it's been for the last few years when it comes to the band's core trio. The big shift musician-wise here lies in drum duties, which sees powerhouse Polish drummer Krzysztof Klingbeing (live for Belphegor, Vader) taking over the position previously occupied by Marco Pitruzella (Six Feet Under, ex-Rings of Saturn, etc.). 

If you're new to the band, "Caput Primum" offers up a style of an eclectic take on tech-death that feels like a mix between the neo-classical hyper-shred nature of First Fragment, the Latin, groove, and prog-death infected nature of Gorod, and pairs all that with the super melodic and symphonic overloaded nature of Inferi. Beyond its incredible density, the song is quite diverse musically and experimental even at times, with the guest contributions of Chilean musician Cristian Cardenas on congas, bongo, shekere, cowbell, and vibraslap authentically bringing the band's Latin identity to the forefront in a litany of interesting ways. 

I'm not sure if every idea presented throughout the 7-minute-long song sticks the landing, (vocally more than musically to be clear) but the song is very impressive regardless of that minor personal quibble with it. Even by tech-death standards, "Caput Primum" is quite the ambitious piece of music and if this song is the first glimpse of what their upcoming 2023 album has to offer, I'm excited to see what else is in store.

If you're looking to have your face melted clean off, be sure to check out Bleak Flesh's "Caput Primum" below. The band's prior releases are available through Bandcamp and are well worth checking out! You can follow the group over on the Bleak Flesh Facebook Page and Instagram Page.