Vaultwraith – Death is Proof of Satan’s Power (Olde Satan)
I’ve been thinking on this one for several weeks now. As is usual around here, that means something is confusing or unclear. In this case it appears to be neither. I’m fully convinced this is an “on purpose” but yet have no actual proof as the band remains obscure and seems to have no live or visual presence. Vaultwraith makes music that has this edge of awesomeness to it, yet there’s something undeniably weathered and ridiculous. This is something like their name, which drips off the tongue, rather than rolls, like bile, leaving the unmistakable taste of acid in your mouth. You feel the same pull to the album title, Death is Proof of Satan’s Power, which at once sounds totally appealing and stupid. This is followed by the wonderful art, and I stress that, courtesy of Dedy Badic, with an incredible, yet trashy landscape of some scantily clad harlot priestess, I assume, riding Satan’s carriage with nightmarish horses, accompanied by a skeleton organist in the rear. I mean just look at it. The sense of color is incredible, but just look at it.
Vaultwraith is thus clearly a band of contradiction and mystery. They refuse to show anything online, other than music and covers. I could find no band photos, and who knows, perhaps the member names are totally contrived and only one person is doing this, which wouldn’t surprise me. What did surprise me is how Death is Proof of Satan’s Power drew my attention with its odd combination of seriousness and mockery. Is it serious? I’m still left questioning. I feel like a child again, tossing darts at old metal poster samples at a carnival, because this nostalgic hurrah is one of the weirdest rides I’ve taken, and I’ve taken a lot. Vaultwraith rely on tired, and sometimes not true, riff passages that sound like old Satan metal from the 1980s. Even the vocals, which are given echo effect to the extreme, transport the listener back if it weren’t for the much clearer production value of the digital era. Tracks like “Devilcraft,” however, are instantly lovable both for their naivety and their solidity. Vaultwraith appears to be serious about what they’re doing, so I might be wrong, this might not be something of a joke, but the way they do it is so solid it’s hard for an old metalhead to not appreciate it. In fact, looking at posts about the band on Facebook, it seems like their demographic is probably 90% older guys who never stopped listening to Satan metal and watching Satan metal VHS tapes. Thus, there’s actually a certain majesty to this approach. The solos, the power, the unambiguous keyboards, the unabashed Satan worship, you’ll learn to dig it, somehow, even if you’re young.
Written by Stanley Stepanic
Vaultwraith: Death is Proof of Satan’s Power
Hells Headbangers
4 / 5
