#AlbumReview: Angoixa – Vida i Mort

Band: Angoixa
Title: Vida i Mort
Label: Independent
Release date:  August  28th,  2026
Country: Spain
Format reviewed: High-Quality Digital Recording

#AlbumReview: Angoixa – Vida i Mort by Sílvia

Death metal band Angoixa (it’s Catalan for Anguish) are back with a killer album that stays true to their brutal sound—like a steamroller crushing your brain minute by minute as the record unfolds. There is no rest or respite in their tracks: pure, unadulterated intensity, featuring relentless drumming and old-school riffs packed with technical skill and proficiency.

Well, yes, there are moments when the intensity loses a bit -otherwise, it would be impossible to breathe- but it is precisely then that the atmosphere takes center stage, intensifying the sense of anguish and oppression that impregnate the album’s 41 minute runtime.

Besides the riffs and the undeniably old-school sound, there is room for excellent guitar solos; the bass also deserves mention, resonating powerfully and adding a thick, dense sound to the tracks. Meanwhile, the unsettling, creepy atmosphere is created by the keyboards, which use sustained notes with a distinctive spectral tone to provide the songs with a sinister vibe.

For those unfamiliar with the band, Angoixa’s sound is pure old-school death metal, meaning genre enthusiasts will thoroughly enjoy this album. All the lyrics are in Catalan -their mother tongue- and the vocals are harsh, naturally, yet intelligible enough to understand the dark, gloomy messages the vocalist delivers. And for those who don’t know Catalan language, there’s always a translator… something I use constantly when listening to bands that sing in Swedish, Finnish, Portuguese… or any other language.

The album kicks off brutally; “Despertar” (“Wake up”) explodes from the very first second like a steamroller. The combination of dense guitars, mercilessly pounded drums, and an animalistic scream makes my brain cells shiver with excitement. The intensity holds steady throughout the track; even when the drumming eases up at times, the atmosphere remains heavy, oppressive, dark, and soul-shrinking. Background keyboards playing long, ghostly notes add just the right touch of spectral atmosphere to the mix. The drums do their job -shattering the listener’s skull with a full arsenal of beats and varied patterns- and when the double-bass kicks in, it completely obliterates your thoughts. The riffs kick ass, old-school style, with that pure Swedish sound, and the lead guitar work is impressive, crafting majestic, dark solos. As for the bass… oh, how it resonates!, providing a vital vibration that makes all the string instruments engage in a sort of danse macabre. The vocals -raspy, torn from the depths of the singer’s gritty vocal cords- are intelligible; those of us who speak Catalan can actually understand the lyrics.

And, after this beginning, what to expect? Just… more. More of everything, more brutality, spectral atmosphere, intensity, an insanely good work at all levels, because this is one of those exploding-in-your-face albums and it’s for listening to it again and again until you drown and dissolve in Angoixa’s music. By the way, can’t think of a more appropriate name for this band… 

“Vida i Mort” (“Life and Death”) consists of seven tracks; it’s a concept album in which each song refers to a stage of life, beginning with birth and ending with death. In between: childhood, adolescence, maturity, old age, and decrepitude. Each track addresses one of these stages -starting with a tone of hope and adventure, then incorporating increasing anguish and darkness as the songs (and the ages they depict) progress- ultimately delving into decline and the inevitable end: death. Yet, this is done without drama; instead, things are stated as they are: direct, sincere, hard-hitting… and terrifying. For no one has ever returned from death to tell us what happens next -if, indeed, there is anything at all.

The cover… oh, the cover art. It’s a wonder! Created by artist David Sarrà (you can find him on Instagram as d.s.ghargots), it is well worth taking the time to admire every single detail that makes up this cover, featuring elements of life and death, diverse wildlife amidst twisted roots, and the central figure: an imposing, terrifying wolf that has just devoured its prey, with lightning-like beams shooting from its eyes… Absolutely brutal.

An album with zero flaws, just pure perfection.  10/10

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10/10  Immortal Classic
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