Covenance – Ravaging The Pristine (2005)

April 8, 2012

As far as I can tell from quick searches around the net, Covenance seemed to be a short lived project involving members of Dying Fetus and Misery Index. Whether this is true or not, I am not entirely sure. I got this 7″ back in the day when the dollar was weak as piss compared to the British pound, and I would get tons of records off Relapse imported at a fraction of the price it would cost me to buy them in my country or in Europe. So, understandably, I know very little about it. All I know is that it was pressed (badly) by Emetic Records.

The artwork is all stretched and distorted, pixellated and completely ruined. this goes for the back artwork rather than the discs and the front, but it still sucks. Who is to blame for this I am not quite sure, it could easily be the label, the pressing plant, or a combination / lack of communication between the two. Nevertheless, this does not effect what is on the actual disc.

Covenance are actually pretty brutal. I can see where this whole Dying Fetus / Misery Index connection is made but it is on a whole more “grindy” level than say brutal death metal. The disc spins at 45rpm and is over before you’ve come to terms with dropping the needle on the wax. But, I guess, this really works with grind. Boom! Fucking have that, you twats! If you see this lying around I suggest you pick it up; I can’t imagine it’s worth anything (currently £2 on Discogs).

(2021 edit: this and any other Emetic Records release has been controversially banned from Discogs. There is a whole interesting drama as to ‘why’, which raises bigger questions in the long term for the marketplace. You can check it out over at https://www.discogs.com/forum/thread/787122?page=2 if you are interested.)