Behold the war horns of Polish blackened death veterans Neolith in the opening bars of their sixth album’s title track “Inbir” and know that a war of a cold and ancient breed is upon you. Indeed, Inbir takes its name from the ancient Sumerian word for war, continuing the Polish band’s thirty-plus-year fascination with Bronze Age Mesopotamia. It’s been seven years since their last album dropped and longer since they’ve last graced this blog, but this mononymic quintet of vocalist Levi, guitarists Conrad and Zi’aR, bassist Kriss, and drummer Semuss are not content with coasting off past success and legacy. Instead, Neolith call Inbir their “most ambitious, complex, and polished work to date.” But all bands says that about their new album eventually. It’s inevitable. Does Neolith’s proclamation ring true, or are they closer to the boasts of King Ozymandias?
Neolith holds Inbir as their most ambitious record, but it’s nonetheless remarkably tight and lively. Though influences of Behemoth’s regal take on blackened death and Nile’s hostile exploration of Antiquity are certainly there, Neolith doesn’t reach for the aforementioned bands’ bombast but hits the warpath running. Inbir seethes with speedy aggression and writhes with shifting blast beats and classic death riffs, hitting especially hard on early cuts “Ashur Has Given Me a Brother” and “The Dawn Is Waking.” Neolith cover a lot of ground with not many different parts and in not much time, fleshing out songs like “Inbir” and “Morte” with a few basic riff shapes played with just enough variation while standing pat to lean 4-6 minute runtimes. Add as many sick solos, slick drum licks, and heaving growls as Inbir has, and that’s a recipe for a good time. Inbir isn’t shaking up the world, but anyone who can see the appeal of spinning donuts in your battle chariot and shotgunning pillaged temple wines should be down with Neolith’s business.
Inbir maintains a potent atmosphere; that’s not because of any reverb or pedal effects but because Neolith make it so by sheer malevolence. Besides the brief bookending synths on “Modlitwa na Marny Czas,”1 Neolith embody an engrossingly sinister spirit the old-fashioned way, with unrelenting energy and minor-key miscreancy. Hear the blackened ringing chords in “Of All the Gods,” the pugnacious kick patterns on “Ouroboros”‘s back end, the death march rhythms of “Morte,” or the comically numerous number of pinch harmonics skewering the soundscape, and know that Inbir is war. Organic-sounding drums and a delightfully gravelly bass tone that doesn’t come through the mix nearly enough (“Ashur Has Given Me a Brother”) lend Neolith a strong foundation for their attack. Conrad’s frequent chromatic solos and his dive-bomb shenanigans also do a lot to build a chaotic, violent atmosphere. It’s not hard to get wrapped up in Inbir.
Variety is where Inbir survives; its absence is also where Inbir falters. To reiterate, Neolith make a lot out of a little on Inbir riff-wise. There’s a sneaky melodicism to “Modlitwa na Marny Czas,” while “Of All the Gods” uses more sustained chords than usual and offers the briefest of breathing room. What really surprised me was how varied Conrad’s solos are on Inbir, shifting between Slayer-informed chromatic tomfoolery and classic shredding and melodic runs, sometimes in the same song (“Ashur Has Given Me a Brother,” “Morte”). But Neolith’s tricks do run thin by the end of Inbir, and the two-song run of “Ouroboros” and “The Four Etemmū of Kurnugi” sees the bloodlust cool a bit. Neither are bad songs, but feel somewhat by-the-numbers for blackened death and only pick up in their bridges. Similarly, Levi’s vocals are powerful and commanding but also very one-dimensional, limiting Neolith’s capacity for strong vocal hooks.2 This doesn’t drastically hamper Inbir’s enjoyability, but it does somewhat dampen its memorability.
Inbir is plenty of fun, and Neolith nail the fundamentals of quality black/death metal the way a veteran band should. My few gripes aside, there are more than enough sharp riffs and pulverizing passages on Inbir to keep you sickos happy. I’m sure some of you will accuse me of underrating this. If so, I get it, but for me Inbir lacks the Wow Factor that would push it up the extra peg. But if you’re looking for a heavy, hostile trip into the war-torn deserts of time immemorial, Neolith aren’t a bad group to take you there.
Rating: Good
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps MP3
Label: Deformeathing Production
Websites: facebook.com/neolith | neolith.bandcamp.com
Releases Worldwide: September 12th, 2026
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