Dubai extreme metallers, Voice Of The Soul, will release their debut album, Catacombs, via UK label Hell's Hammer and India's Transcending Obscurity, on March 27th.

Today the band have released a playthrough video for the track "Pendulum". Vocalist and guitarist Kareem Chehayeb comments, "This is song was inspired by the mass suicide of Jonestown that took place in 1978, but the lyrical content applies to so many political groups and cults whose leaders exploit the poor and disenfranchised for their own gain.”

First formed in Kuwait on the opposite side of the Persian Gulf in late 2007 17 year-old Kareem Chehayeb and 16 year-old Monish Shringi released their first EP, Winds Of Apprehension in July 2009 with second EP, Eyes Of Deceit seeking the light of day the following summer. After playing several shows in Dubai since January 2011, the band opted to relocate to the most popular city and emirate in the UAE before releasing their third EP, Into Oblivion, live on SOS Heavy Metal Radio in Portugal in August 2011. Into Oblivion was undoubtedly the bands most successful record with songs receiving regular airplay across the globe.

During April 2014, the band made home at Haven Studio with producer Hadi Sarieddine in Dubai and recorded their debut full-length album, Catacombs.

Kareem Chehayeb comments: "While the band started off as a straight up melodic death metal band, Catacombs took on a different shift. The thrash has virtually disappeared from our sound on this album and riffs have some added 'colour' now which was inspired by bands like Opeth, Gojira, Daylight Dies, and various jazz bands that really inspired me to start writing metal again. Catacombs also introduces occasional clean vocals, as well as more doom metal on some tracks."

The artwork (as seen below) was designed by Syrian Dubai-based artist Hamood Hallak of MHD Graphics, and was inspired by the concept of one of the tracks from the album called Pendulum.

Kareem elaborates: "While it appears evident that there is a priest/figure leading sheep, the cliff that they are about to walk off is within the temple itself. We don’t specify whether it’s religious or not, because religion isn’t the sole focus. It’s political, it’s social."

 

 

Catacombs tracklisting:

"Desolation"
"Perpetual De..."
"Pendulum"
"Quarantine"
"Cold Rupture"
"The Mist"
"Perdition"
"Defiled"
"Images Subside"

Catacombs teaser video: