Album Review – Across the Swarm / Invisible Threads (2025)

Get ready for a sonic onslaught that delves into the darkest depths of existence in the form of first-class Death Metal made in Italy.

Labeling their style as “Shove Metal”, Bologna, Italy-based Death Metal outfit Across The Swarm has been unleashing their fury in concerts, festivals, and tours across Italy and Europe since their inception in 2013, culminating in 2025 with the release of their sophomore full-length opus, titled Invisible Threads. Recorded at Art Distillery Studios, mixed and mastered at SPVN Studios, and displaying a sinister artwork by SNEM, the new album by vocalist Francesco A. Flagiello, guitarists Marco Lambertini and Luca Sammartino, bassist Mirco Diana and drummer Davide Tomadini is a sonic onslaught that delves into the darkest depths of existence, exploring human degradation, unspoken fears, and wars that ravage both bodies and minds, a fierce manifestation of Death Metal that pummels the listener with an unrelenting impact from the first track to the last recommended for fans of Misery Index, Decapitated, Meshuggah, Dying Fetus, Cannibal Corpse, Lamb of God, Voivod and Carcass.

The rumbling, cinematic intro Intravenous will open the gates of hell for Across the Swarm to crush our frail bodies in Vertebrae, a demented display of classic Death Metal where Francesco sounds infernal on vocals, as well as Davide with his inhumane drumming. Every Day Is Like A Stab In The Chest offers our putrid ears three minutes of brutality and rage with the guitars by Marco and Luca sounding truly acid, and in Nothing Left they keep hammering our souls with their undisputed Death Metal and psychological lyrics (“I can’t live anymore, don’t you see? / Don’t pretend you didn’t see / Right in front of your eyes / They are crawling under the collapsed walls / Scrap iron, destroyed buildings / Pulling out their mutilated children”). Following such violent tune, the metallic bass by Mirco will punch you in the head in the best Groove Metal style in Red Waters, perfect for some wild Corpsegrinder-inspired headbanging.

The band shows no sign of slowing down at all; quite the contrary, they deliver a beyond bestial tune titled Scava Veloce, led by the massive drums by Davide and the always deep guttural by Francesco. It looks like they have mastered the art of crafting three-minute Death Metal attacks, and Dry Eyes couldn’t have been any different. Then Davide keeps pounding his drums mercilessly in Liquefy, offering another very good reason for us all to dive into the mosh pit; whereas Until You Bleed, the second to last song of the album, sounds just as infernal and visceral, living up to the legacy of classic Death Metal, not to mention how demonic the growling by Francesco sounds. Finally, the album ends with the pulverizing title-track Invisible Threads, where Marco and Luca sound ruthless armed with their stringed axes in a lecture in modern-day Death Metal by those Italian bastards.

“We wanted to capture the essence of the shadows that dwell within each of us,” explains frontman Francesco. “The composition of Invisible Threads was a brutal and visceral process. Every note, every word is an invisible thread connecting these shadows to the reality around us. Additionally, SNEM was fully involved in the creative process, visually translating the album’s concept into artwork that amplifies and reflects both the music and the lyrics. This album is an invitation to confront your innermost self and dive deep, all the way to the bottom.” After such beautiful words, if you have what it takes to face the band’s undisputed brutality, go check what they’re up to on Facebook and on Instagram, subscribe to their YouTube channel, stream their sick creations on Spotify, and purchase the venomous Invisible Threads from BandCamp or from Time To Kill Records, diving into the darkest depths of our putrid existence together with one of the most promising names of the Italian extreme music scene.

Best moments of the album: Vertebrae, Red Waters and Invisible Threads.

Worst moments of the album: Liquefy.

Released in 2025 Time To Kill Records

Track listing
1. Intravenous 0:52
2. Vertebrae 3:19
3. Every Day Is Like A Stab In The Chest 3:15
4. Nothing Left 3:34
5. Red Waters 4:12
6. Scava Veloce 3:52
7. Dry Eyes 3:13
8. Liquefy 3:10
9. Until You Bleed 4:07
10. Invisible Threads 4:12

Band members
Francesco A. Flagiello – vocals
Marco Lambertini – guitars
Luca Sammartino – guitars
Mirco Diana – bass
Davide Tomadini – drums

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