Like a savage beast ready to kill, this Belgian Symphonic Deathcore outfit will crush your soul with their new EP, offering some of their most destructive compositions to date.
Like a savage beast ready to kill, Aarschot, Belgium’s own Symphonic Deathcore behemoth When Plagues Collide arises once again from the underworld with another blast of their undisputed extreme music, the incendiary five-track EP Kingmaker, following up on their critically acclaimed full-length albums Tutor of the Dying, from 2018, and An Unbiblical Paradigm, released in 2023. The band’s lineup is the same as before, formed of Wouter Dergez on vocals, Santy Van der Mieren and Joris Dergez on the guitars, Joshua Kinsbergen on bass, and Siebe Hermans on drums, but it feels like those guys decided to take their ferocity to a whole new level in Kingmaker, offering some of their most destructive compositions to date without obviously forgetting to add a good amount of melody and symphonic elements to their core sonority.
Wouter shows no mercy for our souls with his deep, enraged guttural in Mother of Exiles, already offering the band’s classic fusion of violence with symphonic and ethereal elements, not to mention how thunderous the beats by Siebe sound. Then the title-track Kingmaker brings to our avid ears and even heavier version of When Plagues Collide, with Santy and Joris slashing their axes nonstop in the name of extreme music, followed by Persona Non Grata, and with an aggressive name like that we couldn’t have expected anything less violent and harsh, led by the gruesome vociferations by Wouter while the music transpires sulfur and hatred. Their Symphonic Deathcore vein pulses harder than ever in A Grim Counselor, again presenting their fusion of visceral riffs and pounding drums with whimsical background sounds; and ending the EP we have the unrelenting, absolutely demolishing and grim Harvesting the Uterus, with once again Wouter’s bestial growls walking hand in hand with the heavier-than-hell sounds crafted by his bandmates.
You can get in touch with those beyond talented Belgian guys via Facebook and Instagram, staying up to date with all things When Plagues Collide, including their live concerts (and how I wish they would cross the pond and demolish the stages in Toronto and rest of Canada in a near future), stream their amazing discography on Spotify or any other streaming service, or simply go straight into Kingmaker by clicking HERE. When Plagues Collide are already a reference in Symphonic Deathcore and in Deathcore in general, growing their fanbase with each of their demolishing releases, and I can’t wait to see what’s next in their more-than-solid career. Needless to say, if their next full-length album is just half as good as Kingmaker, we will all be a bunch of happy headbangers.
Best moments of the album:Mother of Exiles, Persona Non Grata and Harvesting the Uterus.
Worst moments of the album: None.
Released in 2025 Seek & Strike
Track listing 1. Mother of Exiles 4:54
2. Kingmaker 3:47
3. Persona Non Grata 4:23
4. A Grim Counselor 3:29
5. Harvesting the Uterus 4:22
Band members Wouter Dergez – vocals
Santy Van der Mieren – guitar
Joris Dergez – guitar
Joshua Kinsbergen – bass
Siebe Hermans – drums
Belgium’s own Symphonic Deathcore institution returns with an even more impressive and bold opus that will certainly reach deep inside your blackened heart and soul.
Five years after the release of their excellent debut full-length album Tutor of the Dying, Zaventem, Belgium-based Symphonic Deathcore beast When Plagues Collide is back with an even more impressive and bold album, their sophomore effort titled An Unbiblical Paradigm, highly recommended for admirers of the music by Shadow Of Intent, Lorna Shore and Thy Art Is Murder, among others. Recorded, mixed and mastered by Yarne Heylen at Project Zero Studio, the new album by vocalist Wouter Dergez, guitarists Santy Van der Mieren and Joris Dergez, bassist Joshua Kinsbergen and drummer Siebe Hermans continues to showcase a focused and sharp band venturing through the realms of Melodic Death Metal, Symphonic Black Metal and Metalcore just like in Tutor of the Dying, but this time the quintet took up their music a notch, delivering an even stronger and more electrifying work that will certainly reach deep inside your blackened heart and soul.
An atmospheric start gradually evolves into a Symphonic Deathcore attack titled Converted Into Cipher, with Siebe hammering his drums mercilessly while Wouter roars and screams like a demonic beast, or in other words, it’s indeed a fantastic tune to kick things off; and things get even heavier and more infernal in Death In Progress, featuring guest vocals by Sven de Caluwé (Aborted, Coffin Feeder, Bent Sea), with Santy and Joris kicking some serious ass armed with their axes in the name of first-class Deathcore. God Complex is absolutely epic, imposing and majestic from start to finish, with the deep guttural by Wouter sounding truly inhumane in paradox with the song’s background keys, not to mention how thunderous the kitchen crafted by Joshua and Siebe is, whereas in The Glutton we face wicked lyrics barked by Wouter (“In the absence of daylight / We lay dying in the palm of the promised land / Where failure meets hate and mercilessness / Dominated by the sick and the cold / These barren grounds were always welcoming the nomads we are / An eternity of dying is nothing -Death is our womb”) amidst a furious Symphonic Deathcore madness.
Then the band’s stringed trio formed of Santy, Joris and Joshua will make your head tremble with their venomous riffs and bass lines in Monopoly Of Violence while Siebe keeps pounding his drums nonstop, followed by the demented The Grand Mouth Of Hell, most probably their darkest creation to date, showcasing all of their talent, rage and passion for extreme music spearheaded by the hellish gnarls by Wouter and the always piercing riffage by Santy and Joris. In Devourer Of Memories the band offers us all another round of their acid words (“This inexorable wind collects the lives of the lost and the wandering / Spreading sorrow and despondency / Whilst offering salvation through the breath of extinction / Reaching out her cold hands to deliver and ensure the loss of our cherished and beloved”) spiced up by their sick, heavy-as-hell sound, while ending the album we have the melancholic and atmospheric outro In Alle Stilte (or “in complete silence” from Dutch), with its delicate background sounds walking hand in hand with the words declaimed by Wouter.
The talented and hard working guys from When Plagues Collide are waiting for you with their undisputed Symphonic Deathcore on Facebook and on Instagram, and you can also stream all of their creations on Spotify. Furthermore, above all that, don’t forget to purchase a copy of the breathtaking An Unbiblical Paradigm from Apple Music, or click HERE for all things When Plagues Collide. It’s simply amazing to witness the growth of When Plagues Collide from their previous effort Tutor of the Dying to the sensational An Unbiblical Paradigm, positioning those Belgian metallers as one of the references in Symphonic Deathcore worldwide and, consequently, giving us several reasons to keep banging our heads and raising our horns to their first-class music.
Best moments of the album:Death In Progress, God Complex and The Grand Mouth Of Hell.
Worst moments of the album: I think In Alle Stilte could have been placed before Devourer Of Memories, which would have given the album a much more climatic ending.
Released in 2023 Necktwister/Sonic Rendezvous
Track listing 1. Converted Into Cipher 3:52
2. Death In Progress 5:03
3. God Complex 3:25
4. The Glutton 3:38
5. Monopoly Of Violence 4:23
6. The Grand Mouth Of Hell 4:33
7. Devourer Of Memories 4:39
8. In Alle Stilte 2:46
Band members
Wouter Dergez – vocals
Santy Van der Mieren – guitar
Joris Dergez – guitar
Joshua Kinsbergen – bass
Siebe Hermans – drums
Guest musician Sven de Caluwé – additional vocals on “Death In Progress”
A superb amalgamation of melodic riffs and sweeping solos embraced by the beauty and finesse of symphonic music, blasted by a Belgian outfit that’s among us to dictate violence and spread the plague.
As total strangers, but sharing the same passion for heavy music, five friends met in June 2016 with the same goal in mind, which was translating their vision of life and musical ideas into a genre that’s not well known or developed among headbangers yet, but that has tons of potential to become your next favorite thing in metal. I’m talking about Symphonic Deathcore, an amalgamation of sounds and styles that encompasses melodic riffs and sweeping solos embraced by the beauty and finesse of symphonic music, and there’s no better band to introduce you to this thrilling new genre than Belgian metallers When Plagues Collide (a name standing for the reflection of our modern-day society and, therefore, allowing a critical view on social issues) and their debut full-length opus, titled Tutor of the Dying.
Believe me when I say you’ll be absolutely stunned by the complex and brutal creations by this Aarschot-based squad, comprised of Wouter Dergez on vocals, Joris Dergez and Santy Van der Mieren on the guitars, Bastiaan Barbieux on bass and Siebe Hermans on drums. Featuring an old school Death Metal-inspired artwork by Hans Trasid of Disart Design, as well as the very special guest musicians Ben Duerr (Shadow of Intent, Hollow Prophet), Luke Griffin (Acrania, Human Error) and Tim De Ridder (The Seventh, Before He Shot her), Tutor of the Dying is highly recommended for fans of bands like Fleshgod Apocalypse, Make them Suffer, Martyr Defiled and Molotov Solution, with each one of the album’s 11 tracks “dictating violence and spreading the plague”, like the band itself would say.
If you’re curious to know what Symphonic Deathcroe is all about, simply hit play and let cryptic sounds and noises from the underworld kick off the six-minute aria Messengers of the Holy Falsehood, being gradually accompanied by a choir and background symphonic elements until all hell breaks loose to the demented beats by Siebe and the lunatic vociferations by Wouter, with both Joris and Santy firing truly incendiary riffs from their axes. Fertilization with the Body of Men is a lot more metallic and closer to traditional Metalcore, with Bastiaan and Siebe shaking the foundations of the earth with their rumbling instruments, not to mention how the background piano and other symphonic elements bring an ethereal touch to the band’s sonic havoc, whereas Legion is another ass-kicking, demolishing tune by the quintet where Wouter sounds even more enraged and demented than before, with the strident sound of the guitars beautifully penetrating deep inside our minds.
And their level of destruction and rage only grows in Dictating Violence, a Deathcore tune perfect for slamming into the pit featuring the first guest of the album, vocalist Ben Duerr, blasting sheer brutality and wrath. Then an eerie and somber semi-acoustic bridge titled Als Imperatieve Grootmacht (which means “as an imperative superpower”, from Dutch) showcases devilish vocalizations and enigmatic words, setting the tone for the fulminating title-track Tutor of the Dying, bringing the most demonic, high-pitched screeches by Wouter, while Siebe shows no mercy for his drums nor for our necks. In other words, this is top-notch Deathcore to the masses with a phantasmagorical and amazing atmosphere, which can also be said about Fleshmould, where guest vocalist Luke Griffin growls and barks like a beast together with Wouter while the band’s guitar duo continues their insane shredding feast for our total delight.
An imposing intro evolves into a bold and introspective creation named Belials Archetype, led by the visceral riffs by both Joris and Santy and also presenting truly wicked lyrics (“Malevolent thoughts slither through the mind of this broken man / The weeping eyes of his unborn child reflecting on the name of his murdered wife / The ever cold breeze carries her scent as reminder of the elegance of life / In her fragile existence she achieves in maintaining the breath of belief in the essence of his being / Still death and reunification offer solace and liberation”); and When Plagues Collide continue their deranged feast of sounds and noises in Marked for Destruction, featuring guest vocalist Tim De Ridder, all embraced by spot-on symphonic elements and without showing any signs of the band slowing down. Quite the contrary, they keep taking their violent Deathcore to new heights, obviously making us fans of extreme music happy. Lastly, presenting a sonority slightly different from the previous songs we have Corpus Maleficus, more symphonic and less barbaric than its predecessors but of course still keeping intact their Deathcore roots, with highlights to the great sync between Siebe’s beats and the flammable guitars by Joris and Santy, before the orchestral, Stygian outro Vows captivates our senses and depressurizes our souls from all the devastation brought forth by the band throughout the entire album.
As already mentioned, I’m certain that after taking a more detailed listen at Tutor of the Dying in its entirety on YouTube or on Spotify you’ll get addicted to Symphonic Deathcore, and in order to show your appreciation for the music by When Plagues Collide don’t forget to follow them on Facebook and to subscribe to their YouTube channel. In a nutshell, the excellent Tutor of the Dying, available from the band’s BandCamp page or webstore, as well as from Chugcore’s BandCamp page, from iTunes and from Amazon, is the utmost depiction of what high-end Symphonic Deathcore is all about, always dictating violence, always spreading the plague and, above all that, showing us all When Plagues Collide are among us to stay (and slay).
Best moments of the album:Messengers of the Holy Falsehood, Dictating Violence and Tutor of the Dying.
Worst moments of the album:Corpus Maleficus.
Released in 2018 Chugcore
Track listing 1. Messengers of the Holy Falsehood 6:27
2. Fertilization with the Body of Men 4:25
3. Legion 4:16
4. Dictating Violence (feat. Ben Duerr) 3:42
5. Als Imperatieve Grootmacht 2:41
6. Tutor of the Dying 4:49
7. Fleshmould (feat. Luke Griffin) 3:28
8. Belials Archetype 3:25
9. Marked for Destruction (feat. Tim De Ridder) 4:00
10. Corpus Maleficus 4:18
11. Vows 2:54
Band members Wouter Dergez – vocals
Joris Dergez – guitar
Santy Van der Mieren – guitar
Bastiaan Barbieux – bass
Siebe Hermans – drums
Guest musicians Ben Duerr – vocals on “Dictating Violence”
Luke Griffin – vocals on “Fleshmould”
Tim De Ridder – vocals on “Marked for Destruction”
Like a savage beast ready to kill, Aarschot, Belgium’s own Symphonic Deathcore behemoth When Plagues Collide arises once again from the underworld with another blast of their undisputed extreme music, the incendiary five-track EP Kingmaker, following up on their critically acclaimed full-length albums Tutor of the Dying, from 2018, and An Unbiblical Paradigm, released in 2023. The band’s lineup is the same as before, formed of Wouter Dergez on vocals, Santy Van der Mieren and Joris Dergez on the guitars, Joshua Kinsbergen on bass, and Siebe Hermans on drums, but it feels like those guys decided to take their ferocity to a whole new level in Kingmaker, offering some of their most destructive compositions to date without obviously forgetting to add a good amount of melody and symphonic elements to their core sonority.
You can get in touch with those beyond talented Belgian guys via Facebook and Instagram, staying up to date with all things When Plagues Collide, including their live concerts (and how I wish they would cross the pond and demolish the stages in Toronto and rest of Canada in a near future), stream their amazing discography on Spotify or any other streaming service, or simply go straight into Kingmaker by clicking HERE. When Plagues Collide are already a reference in Symphonic Deathcore and in Deathcore in general, growing their fanbase with each of their demolishing releases, and I can’t wait to see what’s next in their more-than-solid career. Needless to say, if their next full-length album is just half as good as Kingmaker, we will all be a bunch of happy headbangers.
THE HEADBANGING MOOSE 