It’s fitting that I’ve ended up ranking Tigerleech and Benthic next to each other, both because they share a fair amount of DNA, but also because doing so serves as a nice mini tour of 2025 underground heavy music from European capitals – shifting here from Paris to Berlin. As one might expect from a German band, Benthic lean more into post-hardcore than Tigerleech and their metal influences are a bit more groove (and, occasionally, almost metalcore) rather than sludge. The posty, riffy, shouty ballpark is the same, however. The record is bookended with two versions of its title track, both of which are fantastic. The album closer, ‘Sanguine, Pt. 2’, in particular, is an excellent example of how to do post-metal well – melodic and unexpected, without fully diving in at the deep end. There are elements of early Open Hand here, albeit slowed down. Benthic are also great when they speed things up and go full post-hardcore, like on my favourite track on Sanguine, ‘Murmur’: it’s a groovy delight, with a post-hardcore/metalcore riff to die for. Much like Tigerleech, Benthic get the balance between progression and catchiness (of a sort – you won’t be hearing this on Radio 1) spot on here. Hefty.