The world of Farsot is a bleak and harsh place. This pitch black realm is ruled by warring kings that are named Death, Fear, Grief, and Hatred. The Germans' signature musical handwriting has always been reflecting these dark avatars and their fourth album "Life Promised Death" is no exception. "Life Promised Death" is the true heir of all that Farsot have done so far. What makes this album different is a higher density of sound and harsh riffing as well as surprisingly captivating songs that even border on being catchy. According to the band, this is due to Grunge having been a major source of inspiration for "Life Promised Death". What seems unlikely at a first superficial listening becomes audible at a more intense engagement with the album. Lyrically, Farsot are spinning a suitably dark yarn that runs as a thematic thread throughout "Life Promised Death". The album revolves around life slipping out of hand. Farsot emerged from the East German city of Gotha in Thuringia in 1999. This also turns 2024 into the band's 25th anniversary year. Considering the long successful history of this avantgarde black metal act, it is quite remarkable that of the five current members, three are still from the original founders of Farsot and four of them have been playing together for more than 20 years. Following their own artistic pace, Farsot have taken all the time needed to create their fourth masterpiece. The beautifully bittersweet fruit of all the hard work and creative blood, sweat, and tears was worth the effort: "Life Promised Death" is the perfect soundtrack for these dark and disturbing times of trouble.