Alright, amazing name aside, Timeghoul was an unsigned Midwestern American death metal band who existed, professionally, for the great expanse of two years. Within those two years (1992-1994) the band recorded two demos before vanishing. Honestly, there are no records of any activity from any of the contributing members until 2006, when Mike Stevens played drums for the Caustic before their own demise. The only reason why I am stressing the oddity of Timeghoul's history is the band could have been in the same arena as Atheist, Pestilence, or Autopsy. Fate, however, is a fickle and cruel mistress.

It goes without saying that Timeghoul would not exist without the Internet. In fact, this review (and much of my hobbies) would not exist either. Without file sharing and vast electronic resources, Timeghoul's music would have been lost and forgotten by the few people who came into direct contact. 2012 is the year Timeghoul sees a proper release, proper label representation, proper artwork, and a deserving audience. Welcome back our death metal prodigal son.

Timeghoul's style of death metal was genetically inherent to the work of the early '90s. Taking what was created by death metal acts in the mid to late '80s, the early '90s bands began small bits of evolution and progression. Taking the death metal template, these bands built sections and elongated the feeling of terror with increasing complexity. Timeghoul is not an exception, and is perhaps a decent example of progressive death in utero.

Though only two years apart, the two demos collected on _1992-1994 Discography_ show vast differences. Timeghoul's second demo _Panaramic Twilight_ was leagues ahead of its predecessor _Tumultuous Travelings_. Retained the same chaotic nature, the lyrics on _Panaramic Twilight_ gravitated from general medieval butchery to dense science fiction narratives. "Boiling in an Hourglass" and "Occurrence at Mimas" are not only the band's longest songs but also the most developed. Even before this creative crescendo, Timeghoul still pushed their song lengths, leading to an existence incapable of producing a track under six minutes. Why wouldn't you want seven minutes of spiraling death?

The general public owes gratitude not only to Dark Descent Records but to themselves for showing an interest for times long past. The simplicity and proficiency in which classic death metal displays is astounding compared to today's standards. Timeghoul has every right to be included with its metal brethren in the hall of dripping and dismembered death. I shudder to think of a world without Timeghoul or this reissue. It is sometimes like a horrible dream which skirts across my memory late at night. I know things will be alright and I will wake up in a world where "Gutspawn" will be waiting for me in the morning.