Pentagram (Chile) may be a name unfamiliar to many still, but they have been causing a stir for those with an ear to the ground since 1987.

Massively influential on so many of the major players of Death Metal and Black Metal today, they finally release their debut full length on September 6th.

So why is this such an important release and why have most people never had the privilege before?  Why are bands like Napalm Death, At The Gates, Dark Throne, Avulsed, Destruction, Emtombed and Dismember huge fans… some of whom are guesting on this debut album…?

Pentagram (Chile)’s inception dates back to 1985 in the Chilean Capital City, Santiago, when Anton Reisenegger and Juan Pablo Uribe joined forces.  The two friends’ primary interests were Thrash Metal and partying. They chose the name Pentagram for their band, at the time being unaware of the US Doom band of the same name.

Building on the influence of Possessed, Slayer, Celtic Frost and Destruction, they honed their craft and forged their own identity to be a distinctive and original Blackened Thrash sound that was unlike anything else out there.  With their first demo release in 1987, interest in the band rapidly grew throughout the international underground community and there was an early offer a recording contract, but this did not work out due to a breakdown in communication.

The era of Pinochet’s Military Dictatorship in Chile was a difficult time for the South American nation, subjected to alleged Human Rights crimes, corruption and institutionalised torture.  Needless to say, the Military Police took a dim view of anything so subversive, rebellious and underground as Extreme Metal.  Many gigs were shut down by the force of Pinochet’s disapproving Military Police.

Geographical, political and logistical problems contributed to the difficulties that the young band enountered and ultimately they called it a day in 1988 after only 2 demos and a 7″ release of two of the demo tracks, being frustrated by the lack of opportunities available to them when compared to less-deserving and inferior bands that seemed to have these things far easier.  2 years later, Alfredo Peña the band’s Bassist took his own life.

Anton formed Criminal and spent much of the following years working hard with the new project and took the huge step of relocating to Europe.  Currently 7 studio albums in, Criminal remains an active band, but is not the only focus.  Testament to the esteem that Anton is held in by the Metal Community, Messrs Embury, Barker and Lindberg drafted him into Lock Up in 2009 to replace the late Jesse Pintado.

A compilation of all available Pentagram (Chile) material was made available by Chilean label Picoroco Records in 2000 and the following year surviving members of the band reunited, along with Criminal’s Bassist, for a one off show in Santiago that was filmed and later released.  The compilation was later released again in 2008, packaged with the 2001 live show.  Despite the limited releases since the initial tape-trading in the 80s, it was clear that underground interest in the Chilean Pentagram was still very much current and in 2009 Pentagram made it to Europe.

In 2012, Pentagram officially changed their name to Pentagram (Chile) to avoid any confusion with the Doom band that have become universally recognised by the original name.  This again hinted that the band was not confined to the annals of history.

So to 2013 and one of the longest awaited debuts, 28 years since their creation, the renamed Pentagram (Chile) are finally releasing their debut album through German label Cyclone Empire… and it is well worth the wait.  This is bloody good!

What we have here is the real deal, the original article.  Whilst Thrash Metal has seen a resurgence in recent years, there are precious few of the innovators still around and even fewer with the hunger of the old times.  There is a Black Metal aura to this as well, thanks to a touch of evil in the twisted riffs, warped solos and a demonic vocal delivery from Anton.  The benefit of this taking so many years to be undertaken is that Bassist Dan Biggin has skillfully captured a superior sound with his modern studio mix, but has still retained all the dark atmosphere of the primitive earlier work.

The guestlist here is impressive; Morgoth’s Marc Grewe adds his scream to “La Fiura”, Tomas Lindberg from At The Gates, Lock Up and many other bands adds vocals to “Sacrophobia” and Schmier from Destruction adds some vocals to “Spontaneous Combustion”.  Rodrigo Cuadra from pioneering Chilean Metal band Dorso also contributed to the bonus re-recorded demo track from which this album takes its name.

The pedigree of the guests here is totally justified, this is an astounding album of twisted cult Extreme Metal.  This has real cross-genre appeal, melding the best of Black Metal, Thrash and Death Metal into one cohesive and demented whole.  This is a true underground gem and definitely worth the wait.  This album will feature among the highlights of the year for many an informed discerning Metal fan.

There are three versions of the album available, a standard 10 track CD, a limited edition double digipack and a double gatefold album, the latter two of which include re-recorded versions of the original classic tracks from the 1980s.