BRYAN ECKERMANN is a Melodic Black/Death Metal solo artist from San Antonio, TX.
“Plague Bringers” is his eighth full length album, released independently on November 5, 2021.
Outside of his solo project, which already has a prolific output,
Eckermann has been involved in a number of bands including
WINGS OF ABBADON and
SCARS OF THE FLESH, to name a few. Thus, it is quite clear that
Eckermann is a very hard worker. It is through his solo project, however, that he is able to truly let his talents shine.
Eckermann’s riffs recall the essence of
DEATH’s
“The Sound of Perseverance” while combining elements from bands such as
MAYHEM,
AT THE GATES, and
KING DIAMOND (especially in his guitar solos, like on the track
“The Devouring Sun” – very
LaRocque-ian, if you will). While his voice reminds me most of
CARCASS’s
Jeff Walker, he demonstrates a pretty wide range in a very subtle way, reaching
Rob Halford-level falsettos in some of his backing vocals (
“Moonlight and Frostbite”). And last but not least, his work on the keyboard is truly inspired, reminiscent of some of the haunting sounds featured on
KING DIAMOND’s 1990 classic
“The Eye” (
“Ice Queen”). Obviously,
Eckermann belongs to the same class of musician as
Devin Townsend and
Peter Tägtgren.
Other highlights from this album include the title track, which goes from “stomp riffs” as I like to call them (you know, like the ending riff in
SLAYER’s
“Raining Blood” – something that makes you want to stomp) to clean, foreboding serenity;
“Of Death and Decay,” which so prominently featured Black Metal elements that I felt as if I was trapped in a Norwegian winter; and
“Oblivion,” a beautiful instrumental track that, instead of stopping the album’s momentum as most tracks of this ilk do, gives us a way to process all of the brutality that ensued before it.
Overall, this is a great record.
Eckermann’s ideas are fresh and raw, which is no small feat when you’ve released eight full length albums already. Much like
SWEEPING DEATH, whose EP
“Tristesse” I reviewed a few weeks back, it astounds me that
Eckermann is not signed to a label. His style would fit so perfectly within the ranks of
Nuclear Blast’s roster. If there are any labels reading this review, contact
Eckermann immediately! He deserves to be signed.
Production: 10
Musicianship: 10
Songwriting: 9
Memorability: 9