I’m not a death metal guy. It all kind of sounds alike to me. But "Ashen Womb," the new album from Copenhagen’s Phrenelith, immediately stood out.

The best part is the Mesozoic sound. It’s so expansive. The band sounds charged and vicious, but the music’s drama and ferocity are directed. Songs zig and zag with intention.

The bass fills out the the bottom-heavy, beautifully echoed guitars that lay waste to all and sundry with drubbing riffs. Vocals, if you can call them that, belch from the dead’s aching guts. And the drums attack from all directions, often building to where everything is cracking under the weight.

I wanted to learn more about Phrenelith, but the band did not respond to my interview request because they were too busy with other interviews.

"Ashen Womb," released February 7 on Dark Descent/Me Saco Un Ojo Records, is Phrenelith’s third album. The band debuted in 2017 with "Desolate Endscape" and followed up in late 2021 with "Chimaera." The songs on “Ashen Womb” are not unlike those on “Chimaera,” but the new album just sounds better.