Paria – Surrealist Satanist
11 years, 4 demos, a split, a compilation and 3 full-lengths beneath their bullet belts and Germany’s Paria are still hammering out the pure orthodox black metal to stoke those voracious fires of hell™. What I thankfully stumbled ignorantly into was a huge sound presented by an inventive power trio.
Having never heard this band before, I was instantly drawn to Paria’s northern tone, as the riff style and overall inner force of this material bares many favorable similarities to David “Blackmoon” Parland’s playing and writing style, but notably more adventurous. This finds Surrealist Satanist to be very reminiscent musically of early Dark Funeral, but thankfully, they break up the pulsing speed offensive with effective slower breaks and a vocalist that possesses his own unique screaming style. His higher register rasp is sharp and penetrating, but what adds to the depth in his delivery is the periodic chants and agonizing moans he offers to colorize the more mournful segments of music. Every track is stitched together expertly with interest and a skillful fury that lifts inspiration from those who came before, but Paria twist the elements into their own unholy subject and are a band worth listening to. Repeatedly. The layering within the music is also noteworthy and elevates Surrealist Satanist to a loftier level, for those dissonant and interesting guitar lines enchant with cavernous depth, only to be further glorified by independent bass lines that you can actually hear! Again, the bass guitar can be such a mighty force in death and black metal and it is always such a pleasant surprise to have it audible in a mix, AND a vibrant part of the music. Paria have all their bases covered and are worthy of so much more praise than they may or may not have received in the past.
I always find it odd when a band this good and solid has evaded my radar for all of these years. Time to do some backtracking and unearth the layers in their back catalog. -Marty
W.T.C. Productions
No studio tracks up on youtube yet, but here’s Wormlike Proselytism live:
Worm Gear 
Hey, is that a titty bullet belt or a evil man boob?