Many claims are made about this third album from Brood of Hatred. In summary the expectation is of melodic, progressive metal with haunting atmospheres.
Dark growls meet a dreamy yet heavy progressive style. “God over Demons” has a soaring and comforting landscape. I can see the comparison with Opeth, but more so at this point I felt tinges in the ambiance of the now defunct band Nahemah. “Self- Destruction” is heavier and darker in its deathly style and despair. The drummer keeps it going as the deathly echoes resound around the percussive beat. As the album progressed, I sensed that I was hearing a similar mood: roaring vocals, tinges of melancholy in the air, strong instrumentals and twists but nothing to make me leap out of my chair with excitement. The title song continues the agonised intensity. Some nice guitar work and a quiet, moody ending singled out “The Mask of Death” as the drummer bashes on relentlessly. “The Uncarved Block” started promisingly with the drama of an Opeth track, and distinguished itself with its layers of atmospheres, something that I found mostly missing over the course of the album. All that was left was “Astral Projection”, an orchestral cosmic-orientated piece which unless I had missed something seemed at odds with the rest of it.
I struggled to reconcile this album with the promised “technical, blistering and emotional landscapes”. It is for the connoisseur of death metal. Intense to the point of relentlessness, I found that “The Golden Age” followed a similar pattern throughout and lacked spark.
(5/10 Andrew Doherty)
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