REVIEW: Anoxia - Revel In Sin

Anoxia are a four piece death metal band from Australia, and are presenting us with their debut full length album Revel In Sin. The band promised "eight tracks of pure, malevolent mayhem" and they've stuck to their word like glue. This is a non-stop violent affair, so any discerning death metal fans may well find something to enjoy here.

To ramp you into the album, Anoxia start with the title track - two minutes of crashing instrumental, with a repeating booming melody that leads the listener straight into the first full track, ‘Blood on the Altar’, whilst continuing the same melody. Vocalist Joey Scott pig squeals his way into the track as shredding guitars cover his back, and he manages to maintain a deep growling scream whilst keeping the lyrics totally audible. The song switches tempos regularly, not being chained to any one rhythm for more than a few bars, making you unable to tell where the song is headed.

‘M.N.W’ is next up on the roster, it keeps up with the absolute mayhem of the track prior. Its rhythms are absolutely unrelenting, each section of the song giving another pulsating beat to head bang to. In the last minute of the song, a space opens up for a razor sharp guitar solo to bring it round to a final section of growls, as guitars and bass build together in the back, revealing the sounds of hell and closing out the song. The fourth track, 'Rule By Cold Steel', opens with a high pitched squeal showing the diversity Joey is able to conquer with his voice. The onslaught of this track is a testament to everything death metal, evoking the fiery pits of hell and much more devilish imagery from an audio standpoint.

‘In the Wake of Desolation’ comes crashing in, not wasting a moment but getting straight into the thick of things via the drums of Marco Alvarez. These are some of his best moments, featuring some incredible blast beats and untethered fills. Reaching the three minute mark brings a head banging breakdown once again. featuring a guitar solo that is cut a little too short, but impressionable nonetheless. The next number ‘Dwell in Death’ once again brings no pause to the heaviness of their rhythms, with four minutes of relentless beat switching and gargling screams. The song's name being screamed repeatedly to bring the track to an end was a feature we particularly enjoyed. 

The band promised non-stop brutality with this album, and after the seventh track it is abundantly clear that no lie was told. ‘Darker Forms of Knowledge’, perhaps the darkest of them all, devours its way into the eardrums of the listener, leaving nothing standing in its path. Sonic guitars, pummelling drums and unforgiving screams come together cohesively on a track that shows exactly what it means to be death metal. 'Merciless Sin’ closes the album opening with an addictive riff, before those vocals once again come screeching in. The track features some significant screams in the second half not quite like those in the rest of the album, making the song stand out amongst others before the sonorous instrumentals pitter into silence and draw the album to a close.

For those that prefer variety and duality within an album, this may not be for you, but those death metal fans craving eight tracks of non-stop, bone crushing, gut squelching metal will find themselves very well sated. The album is well put together and recorded, well written, and - of course - immensely musically satisfying for anyone that has the stomach for it. 

Anoxia have multiple support slots lined up in 2025, so be sure to catch them live if you can and if not, keep an eye out for them!

Score: 8/10

Revel In Sin was released on April 18th 2025.

Words: Amy Smyth

Photos: Anoxia