Tombs has an upside down cross to bear

<a href=”http://tombsbklyn.bandcamp.com/album/path-of-totality”>Path of Totality by Tombs</a> On Monday, January 11, three touring bands — 1349, Tombs, and Full of Hell — descend into the Basement (ha!) for a night of faux-Satanic worship and black leather. All three bands released their latest records in 2014: 1349 with the militaristic black-thrash of Massive Cauldron of Chaos, Tombs with the gothic post-metal bombast of Savage Gold, and Full of Hell with their unorthodox collaboration with Japanese noise producer Merzbow. Disc 1 of Full of Hell & Merzbow emphasizes Full of Hell’s brutal death-grind; somewhat of a departure from the crusty powerviolence that dominated 2011’s Roots of Earth Are Consuming My Home. Disc 2 let Merzbow exhibit his genre-defining noise. Full of Hell’s latest 7’-inch, “Amber Mote in the Black Vault,” was released in November. A collaboration with misanthropic sludge duo the Body, One Day You Will Ache Like I Ache, will also come to fruition on March 25 via Neurot Recordings.
 
Tombs’ Savage Gold may have ultimately proved disappointing due to an overly lifeless production job from Erik Rutan, but Path of Totality remains a transcendent experience that ultimately defies genre classifications. Vocalist/guitarist Mike Hill compiled a playlist for Stereogum where he listed groups such as Sisters of Mercy, Death in June, Black Flag, and Celtic Frost as most influential to the band’s sound. Indeed, he tells Stereogum that the band employed Rutan as producer on Savage Gold to beef up the “metal” aspect of the sound, and diminish the more atmospheric components.

The first half of the record is particularly strong, as the band balances ominous tremolo picking against sludgy dirges and surprisingly progressive riffing, especially on “Bloodletters.” But the record never sounds as filthy as the term “blackened sludge” would indicate. If anything, it sounds majestic. “Passageways” is a highlight, as Hill evokes a sense of vulnerability and longing in his ambiguous howls of “Her eyes fill with tears as shadows cross the sky / I wear a crown / I eat the heart of her memory / I bear the mark in the shadow of her effigy.”

In the meantime, the members of Tombs have stayed busy, with Hill launching his own coffee company. Indeed, the band’s last performance in Atlanta was back in 2011, opening for Singaporean grinders Wormrot at the now-defunct North Avenue space the Archive Gallery. That night’s set was entirely composed of tracks from the not-yet-released Path of Totality, and yet it still counts as one of the more memorable performances in recent history. In any case, expect a good amount of new material on the 11th.  

$15-$18. 8:30 p.m. With Vimur. The Basement,1245 Glenwood Ave. S.E. 404-622-8686.