The name INFERI comes from a reference to Harry Potter. That’s the last calm thing you’ll read in this review.
The Nashville tech death masters return five years after Vile Genesis with Heaven Wept, released on April 10, 2026 via The Artisan Era — the same company founded by guitarist Malcolm Pugh in 2014 and which has become almost synonymous with a certain kind of melodic tech death: fast, flashy, technically terrifying but with enough melody that you don’t get lost. Inferi didn’t just make that sound — they defined it. The question with every new record of theirs isn’t whether it will be good. It’s whether it will have something to say that they haven’t already said.
Heaven Wept does. And it says it in 37 minutes — not a second more.
Stevie Boiser on vocals is one of the reasons this record works so well. Shrill highs, steady mids, deep growls — all three delivered with conviction, without any of them seeming to be the “weak” card. He recalls Trevor Strnad of the Black Dahlia Murder era in the way he guides the songs — as if he knows exactly where he wants to take you and when to let you fall.
Guitarists Malcolm Pugh and Sanjay Kumar share the solos with a fairness you rarely see in dual-guitar bands. One solo is one’s, the next is the other’s, and when they collaborate the result is what you call “oh, that’s why there are two guitarists.” “Of Rotted Wombs” specifically has a Kumar solo in the back half that is among the highlights not just of the record but of the year. The track builds with organ, choir and guitars that “weep” — and it does so without becoming grandiose or bloated. It says what it has to say and leaves.
Spencer Moore on drums — who left right after for Archspire, so you’re saying goodbye to him here too — sounds surprisingly natural for a tech death band. He doesn’t sound like a machine, he sounds like a person playing fast. That difference is bigger than it seems. The bass was played by Pugh himself — and if you didn’t know, you wouldn’t notice, which is a compliment in itself.
Now for what’s missing: the low frequencies are almost nonexistent in the mix. The band plays live without a bassist and that shows. It doesn’t ruin the record, but at times you feel that something could be pushing heavier from below. Also, those looking for the orchestral flavor of Revenant (2018) will be disappointed — here the orchestral elements are subtle and functional, not central.
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But these are minor complaints for a record that knows what it wants and does it with precision. Eight tracks, under forty minutes, no waste. If you love tech death and haven’t heard Inferi, this is a good place to start. If you already know them, you already know what you’re doing.
Rating: Very good! Released: April 10, 2026 | Label: The Artisan Era For fans of: The Black Dahlia Murder, Archspire, Vale of Pnath, Beyond Creation Websites: Bandcamp
