Pestifer – Defeat of the Nemesis (EP)
Release Date: 21st April 2023
Label: Debemur Morti Productions
Bandcamp
Genre: Death Metal, Progressive Death Metal.
FFO: Cognitive, Mithras, Hideous Divinity.
Review By: Andy Spoon
Based entirely off of the fictional concept of a post-apocalyptic environment in which humanity is building entirely-new habitats based upon having left a dead Earth, Pestifer seeks to add dynamic punch to the dread of facing a new reality and a new dominion for humanity having inhabited four planets to re-settle. Each new planet has its own perils, giving rise to four of the five tracks on Pestifer’s 2023 EP, Defeat of the Nemesis, set to release on April 21st, 2021 through Debemur Morti Productions.
Pestifer isn’t messing around with the progressive nature of this EP. There are no less than 2 dozen progressive shifts and breakdowns across merely five tracks, leaving the listener in a constant state of anticipation for the next chapter of musical attack. It cannot be said enough that this band is one of the baddest progressive acts in the death metal genre right now, adding a completely-unique, brutal attack that isn’t often in the extreme prog sub-sub-subgenre.
It’s amazing to compare them to other acts in the “show-off” cadre of bands, as Pestifer simply hasn’t lost the extremity of the nature of the death metal, having the mortal dread, the fear and panic, and the hostility of what makes death metal great; yet they ought to be in the same conversation as bands who are less-lethal, like First Fragment, Rings of Saturn, and An Abstract Illusion. If someone is a fan of any of those acts, but wants something darker, meatier, and more brutal, they really owe it to themselves to check out Pestifer and Defeat of the Nemesis.
I would not be giving enough credit to any of the band members’ individual skills if I were to spend any time talking about one or another’s effect on the music, as the entirety of the music section is absolutely knocking this EP out of the park. If I had to choose one particular section that gave me the most grins, I believe that bassist Adreien Gustin’s dynamic playing was the highlight of the whole EP for me. Being able to pick out the insanity of his playing across all five of the tracks was an absolute treat. I’m elated that his work wasn’t just buried further into the mix by engineer Gerald Jans at Noise Factory studio.
I’m honestly shocked at how excellently this EP was put together. It’s short, to-the-point, effective, and absolutely full of extreme moments that will take listen after listen to decipher and enjoy. I think this could be an EP that I could slap on repeat and spend a few hours with, just to try and “re-hear” each song, as every play brings a new experience. This is one of the wonders of prog music, but generally not one of the ones for brutal death metal. Having this work across both genres really is an absolute tribute to how well Defeat of the Nemesis was created.
I generally wouldn’t give an EP 4.5 or 5 out of five stars, but Defeat of the Nemesis really pushes all the buttons that I’d want for an EP like this. While I spend much of my time bitching about cohesiveness and forethought when putting tracks together on an album, the short nature of the EP, with the non-stop attack of the phenomenal musicianship make Defeat of the Nemesis an absolute banger from start to finish. I think this is an EP that death metal fans need to experience. I can’t wait to see what Pestifer does next after this release. 
(5 / 5)
