Larvae - Prague Infestation

Italy’s Larvae have been hard at work this year for 2025, first releasing a new album and now a live album full of tracks across their career since 2019.  “Prague Infestation” is exactly what fans would expect from a Death Doom band like that of Larvae: raw, powerful, and lives up to the original sound, especially when it comes to their horror use of samples. Like Rob Zombie, Larvae makes a huge use of samples in between songs from movies/ shows/ and within their music, but displays them in equal, if not clearer quality along with the rest of their music when performed live. Some bands like Septicflesh when they perform live lose a bit of their luster if they play the symphonic elements/ samples from a computer versus have the live orchestra there (and they have done both), but thankfully Larvae don’t have that issue here. The mix of live atmosphere with the music is balanced and it makes the listener feel that they are indeed at a live show versus the band recording live in a room somewhere with no one to watch.

For those who do not know Larvae, they are a three piece that perform a Death Doom style that is a mix of very old Paradise Lost meets a band like Worm in very gritty fashion, trading between Black Metal shrieks to deeper, more Incantation styled growls and overall creating a very unsettling horror atmosphere between all the EPs they released so far loaded with screaming samples. However, to hear them on their EPs and their last record is a bit of a reversal from what is presented on the record, as the sound is with the focus on the vocals mostly with the guitars pushed back on an album like “Arousal of the Crawling Creatures,”(which is also drastically shorter and less fulfilling than their previous EPs and the current live release) and then to hear it on “Prague Infestation” the guitars are pushed more up front and sounds filthier and dirtier from vocalist/ synth performer Lucilla whose range of voice is still strong and penetrates between the shrieking/ snarling/ some singing and interacting with the crowd such as on a track like ‘Cold Euphoria.’ It is very live but also lumbering and human alongside bassist Maso who was always pretty clear in the mix in the studio and live, and the drums from Tom. Then there are others that play off like a studio track like ‘Lust for the Dead’ and sound like an improvement over the original recording.

There are a lot of ‘outro’ tracks on this live record which mostly feel like filler interludes which enhance the horror atmosphere, but also take away from the crushing weight of the heaviness of the more Metal tracks. For those who want a fast raucous track that can stir the pit the closing cover from Ulcerous Phlegm is very fitting as it just feels like a Doom crust layered over the original sound, but mostly when considering a track like ‘Summoning the Glory Beast’ it feels like a dramatic wait that would lead to a smoke filled stage and low dimmed lights to amp up the crowd before the more Doom Metal tracks like ‘Larvae’ come in in steamroller fashion. Since this is more Doom than Death Metal driven the overall experience is very raw and lulling, but certainly not what one would get if they went to a Black Metal concert from the likes of Dark Funeral or Death Metal from Aborted. There isn’t too much in the way of circle pit drivers here, but more the stand and headbang slowly type of vibe. Those who want to feel awash in distortion and twisted vocals with drawn out riffs who have a love for Sludge or Doom with a horror touch will really enjoy this live release, but those who want something a little more frantic and a faster pace might want to check out Deicide live instead.

3 / 5 STARS