ALBUM REVIEW: Hatred Reborn – HateSphere
Ever noticed how the hardcore scene tends to adopt certain metal bands? CHILDREN OF BODOM, CROWBAR and POWER TRIP all experienced a degree of crossover success and while it hasn’t happened with HATESPHERE yet, one listen to Hatred Reborn and it’ll seem like a case of ‘when’ not ‘if.’ The Danish five-piece deal in a particularly gnarly blend of groove metal and Euro thrash that wouldn’t be out of place at Outbreak Fest. All it’s going to take is one live video going viral and we’ll see a whole bunch of shorter-haired fans turning up at their shows to spin-kick their hearts out.
Hatred Reborn is also an appropriate title. This is their first record since the coronavirus pandemic and the debut for new singer Mathias Uldall. He does a decent job too, snarling and screaming with thuggish charisma, and yes, sounding a lot like a hardcore vocalist. He gives HATESPHERE a fresh makeover and while this is reliably similar to their older work, it also feels new. The Danes have been workhorses of the European metal landscape for years, and Hatred Reborn is them reclaiming their place after a long absence.
This is an album that exists to wreck necks and bring carnage to dingy venues. It’s fast, heavy and antagonistic, and while it’s a bit one-dimensional, it fulfils its purpose admirably. Songs like Cutthroat and Gravedigger are the musical equivalent of a chimp ripping your fingers off and there’s a lot of nice, meaty riffs in here to get everyone grimacing in approval. HATESPHERE have also added just the right amount of variation to give each song an identity. Sure, they have a template and do stick to it, but groovier sections like the chorus to 918 do wonders for the replay value.
On the downside, this does mean that HATESPHERE aren’t an essential band. Until TERROR’s fanbase notice them, they’re unlikely to climb much further up the festival line-ups and while Hatred Reborn is fun, it’s nothing that seasoned metalheads haven’t heard already. This is music for lifting weights and starting circle pits, but it’ll never headline Hellfest.
For a respectable, meat and potatoes mosh band though, HATESPHERE are easy to recommend. There’s an uncomplicated, testosterone-addled appeal to songs like The Truest Form Of Pain and they’ve got a lot of riffs in their repertoire. The SCORPIONS cover is a minor misstep, but otherwise there’s nothing to criticise here. Hatred Reborn is a blunt instrument and so long as you don’t expect a supercomputer, it gets things done.
Rating: 7/10
Hatred Reborn is set for release on March 24th via Scarlet Records.
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