Review
Sutekh Hexen
Ordo Adversarial

Sutekh Hexen, the name alone has an undeniable air of mystery and darkness that while you may not know exactly what they sound like at this minute but whatever that sound is, you feel in the darkest recesses of your subconscious something telling you to stay away from it; and that little voice in your head might be a smart little bugger because once you actually hear Sutekh Hexen, no matter how hard you try, that feeling of dread malice will never go away. Let’s take this one step further shall we; Ordo Adversarial (the first Sutekh Hexen material to hit wax, which is so far my favorite way to experience the band (not a surprise though coming from me as many of you already know) and the presentation of this particular 7” EP is just about perfect) starts with the Latin phrase “Ordo” (meaning Order or Rank or Class) and ends with “Adversarial” conjuring imagery of old Medieval groups maybe a rebellious or group of adversaries to the established order (to me, it seems like some ancient rite or dark magick is being represented on this EP, and that may not be far from the truth).

The first time that I put Ordo Adversarial on the record player, it felt like I was cheapening the experience by not getting into the mood; but my level of excitement was so high that I was neither thinking clearly nor did I feel like frightening the other people in my house by initiating some dark rites (though by now I am sure that they are used to bizarre behavior involving my record listening habits). Even still, my excitement was completely justified as the blackened waves of noise enveloped the air around me as my ears were subjugated to two bleak and harsh soundscapes; “Bled Thy Likeness” is all crushing waves of ruthless sound and drones that hide some real melodies by burying them under a mountain of layered guitars and percussion sounds while “Murmur” is subtle in its distinct differences as the higher pitch and the at times less hidden melody create a slightly different mood while remaining just as ominous sounding as its partner.

You may not have another opportunity to hear such a bleak and dark masterpiece such as Ordo Adversarial, and Sutekh Hexen realizes one thing that kills the effectiveness of others releases and that is the restraint and brevity of this 7” EP is just the right length for such a sonic assault for blasting listeners but still not completely overwhelming their senses and leaving them wanting more even. By this time, Ordo Adversarial is long sold out in the physical form, but there are still copies floating around out there; I completely suggest tracking this record down because it may open you up to a whole new experience of sound that may suck you into its clutches (just like it did me) and the record is just damn awesome.