What kind of god would test a child? You’ll get the answer to such a delicate question and more in the incendiary sophomore opus by one of the most demented monsters of the current Blackened Deathcore scene worldwide.
Time is a strange thing. Just ask Las Vegas, Nevada’s own Blackened Deathcore monster Ov Sulfur. Almost three years after the release of their bestial debut The Burden ov Faith, the band formed of Ricky Hoover on vocals, Christian Becker and Chase Wilson on the guitars, Josh Bearden on bass, and Leviathvn on drums returns in full force with their sophomore opus, entitled Endless. Produced by Josh Schroeder (Lorna Shore, Signs Of The Swarm, King 810, Varials) at Random Awesome! Recording Studio, Endless may just be the magnum opus for those anti-God metallers, here aiming for something timeless. The album’s overarching theme calls back to a line from “Earthen,” a song about Hoover’s nephew’s tragic losing battle with cancer that questions, “What kind of god would test a child?” Extend that to everyone – does religion not claim us all as children of God? – and you have to wonder what kind of benevolent maker would put their very own through trials and tribulations.
The menacing intro Endless//Godless will drag us all to Ov Sulfur’s Stygian lair, crushing our spinal cords with Seed, where Ricky vociferates the song’s acid lyrics manically (“The realization of completely losing everything / Feeling all the pressure, knowing things forever changed / The weight of guilt and agony has become too much to bare”) amidst an absolute sonic devastation. Leviathvn keeps the adrenaline flowing in Forlorn, accompanied by the crisp, no shenanigans riffage by Christian and Chase; and it seems to be a trend among Deathcore bands to release longer, more elaborate songs, like Lorna Shore did in their latest album, and Ov Sulfur’s contribution comes with Vast Eternal, with those breakdowns plus the deep screeches by Ricky turning it into a must-listen for fans of the style. Wither sounds maybe too Metalcore for my taste, and not the good type of Metalcore, but that extremely mellow one, although I understand the message of the song.
Evermore feels a lot heavier and more dynamic, with Ricky sounding demonic screaming the song’s austere words (“Why is it that death is always around me? / It’s taken everything and everyone I love / I’m forever stuck and always left behind / Trapped in an endless cycle / It’s never my time”); whereas Josh Davies (of Ingested) lends his demented vocals to the band’s Deathcore sonority in Dread, while Christian, Chase and Josh hammer their axes like true metalmaniacs. Then Johnny Ciardullo (of Carcosa) joins the band in the somber, visceral Bleak, again showcasing a pulverizing performance by Leviathvn on drums, sounding like a Symphonic Black Metal beast at times. The last guest of the album is vocalist Alan Grnja (of Distant), with the band offering a more direct Deathcore hymn entitled A World Away, where the riffs and solos by the band’s guitar duo sound as acid as possible, before we have the pensive Endless//Loveless closing the album, a dark ballad full of emotions like rage, despair, hope and anger.
“If experiences or the resulting feelings went on forever, the subject would go insane,” commented Rick. “Even positive ones would eventually be blasé, which could lead to a lot of questioning yourself. Of course, we focused on the negative ones; because we’re a metal band after all. What if this doubt never ceases? What if I never stop grieving over the loss of a loved one? How would this all make us feel? How would it affect our sanity?” That eternal paradox between good and evil, positive and negative, light and darkness, and so on, can be fully appreciated throughout the ten songs in Endless, and you can purchase it from their own BandCamp, or by clicking HERE, and don’t forget to also check their merch HERE, to give them a shout on Facebook and on Instagram, to subscribe to their YouTube channel, and to stream their Stygian hymns on Spotify. Because time might be a strange thing, but the music blasted by Ov Sulfur in Endless is not. It’s first-class, dark and visceral Deathcore, and I’m sure we’ll hear a lot more from those talented guys in a not-so-distant future.
Best moments of the album: Seed, Vast Eternal, Evermore and Bleak.
Worst moments of the album: Wither.
Released in 2026 Century Media Records
Track listing
1. Endless//Godless 1:50
2. Seed 4:49
3. Forlorn 4:23
4. Vast Eternal 6:03
5. Wither 5:01
6. Evermore 4:24
7. Dread 5:14
8. Bleak 5:13
9. A World Away 4:31
10. Endless//Loveless 4:30
Band members
Ricky Hoover – vocals
Christian Becker – guitars
Chase Wilson – guitars
Josh Bearden – bass
Leviathvn – drums
Guest musicians
Josh Davies – vocals on “Dread”
Johnny Ciardullo – vocals on “Bleak”
Alan Grnja – vocals on “A World Away”
THE HEADBANGING MOOSE 