ALBUM REVIEW: Cold Black Suns – Enthroned

Since their formation back in 1993, ENTHRONED have cemented their legacy as one of the best, and arguably most underrated black metal bands on the planet. Blending razor sharp, aggressive rhythms with tight, melodic lead guitars, the band provided a template for melodic black metal that many have emulated, but rarely perfected. Their latest, eleventh studio album, Cold Black Suns, sees the band return a whole five years since the release of Sovereigns, and notably sees ENTHRONED depart somewhat from their trademark sound, opting for a far more caustic and callous sound that, at times, borders on chaotic.

Ophiusa, with its ethereal, clean guitar tones and hypnotic musicianship, lulls the listener into a false sense of security, with a surprisingly sublime offering, with a few grating elements thrown in to add some density to the sound. There’s little in the way of vocals, the music is allowed to carry this song and craft a darkly atmospheric instrumental piece which draws the listener in. Proving to be the polar opposite of the albums opener musically, Hosanna Satana is a cacophonous slab of caustic black metal with rabid vocals, feral, frenetic guitars and machine-gun-precise drumming all coming together to make a short sharp shock of visceral and powerful music, providing an early highlight.

Oneiros takes the listener back down a far more atmospheric path, with thick, full chords and punishing primal percussion making this song sound absolutely monolithic. With plenty of soaring, acidic vocal roars and sonorous backing vocals, it also possesses a very melancholic and ritualistic feel, something which grabs the listeners attention immediately, and makes this fairly lengthy song come to what feels like a slightly premature end. It’s a masterclass in how to make engrossing and mesmerising mid tempo extreme metal. Vapula Omega is a burst of chaotic, dense rhythms and shrill, soaring vocals, interlaced with some sharp, discordant hooks. It’s a song that is as epic as it is grating, with a few vast, monolithic motifs providing a break from the aggression that marks most of this track, and some haunting, minimalist lead guitars adding depth and an aura of menace of the sound.

Silent Redemption is a much lengthier affair, making use of eerier, clean guitar tones and a reduced pace in order to make a song that is both melancholic and grandiose, with a steady beat, measured guitar and bass hooks and well placed vocals adding to the expansive nature of the track. It gathers momentum, and launches into a few more driven sections, but never fully becomes a blistering blast of brutality. This marked change in the style and delivery of the music works incredibly well, and is a great deviation from the established formula that pays off. Aghoria is another fast, fierce and furious aural assault that incorporates huge, droning guitar hooks and booming, chanted vocals once again, to brilliant effect. It’s an incredibly bleak and visceral piece of music, with a solid ambience that only adds to this songs many charms, making it another notable highlight on a record full of excellent music. Beyond Humane Greed follows in very much the same vein, but with a decidedly more frenetic and energetic edge which gives the song lots of driving power. With plenty of discordant riffs thrown into the mix for good measure, this is, for the most part, a surprisingly light and uplifting song, marking a curious, yet impressive, change in the bands sound that certainly pays off.

Smoking Mirror, a haunting, sepulchral offering that moves at a funereal crawl, manages to be an impressive and interesting offering in spite of its extended length. It’s a thunderous, primitive effort, with massive drums, minimalist, aggressive guitar passages and rabid, feral vocals. The songs opening moments quickly give way to a wall of cacophony, making for an acerbic and jarring piece of music that sets the listener up very well for the ninth and final song, Son Of Man, a near nine minute behemoth of a track, which brings together steady, bleak rhythm sections, epic yet dissonant leads and some of the most eclectic vocal deliveries on the whole record, ranging from bestial black metal howls through to robust, throaty roars. It quickly shifts between vast, atmospheric moments to much more primal and starkly stripped down sections, something which keeps this song interesting throughout, and takes the listener through a wide range of music in a relatively short period of time. The song slowly rises to a bellicose crescendo, adding a fantastic, climactic exclamation point on a brilliant record.

Cold Black Suns is easily one of the better records from ENTHRONED in the last decade, surpassing even Sovereigns, an album that in itself was seen as a return to form. One of this record’s defining characteristics is its aggressive and liberal use of dark and acerbic elements, opting for cacophony and primal fury than the sort of tight, catchy hooks that defined their early albums. Cold Black Suns sees ENTHRONED fully embracing their darker and more visceral side, and making perhaps their most dissonant and macabre musical statement to date. There’s little, if any, in the way of filler on here, and it’s incredibly clear that, even two and a half decades into their career, the band are not running out of ideas fast. It’s far from the bands creative zenith, but it possesses more impressive and memorable music than many of their peers, and indeed those who have taken inspiration from them, are able to muster collectively.

Rating: 9/10

Cold Black Suns is out now via Season Of Mist. 

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