ALBUM REVIEW: Desolation – Khemmis

When KEHMMIS‘ second album, 2016’s Hunted, was still dripping in praise from critics, peoples eyes quickly turned to the band to see what the follow up would be like. Their sophomore record showcased a seamless signature blend of old school and proto-metal riffage mixed with stoner doom mentality and songwriting which proved as addictive as it was unique as only two years later we’re craving more and new album Desolation is just the hit we’ve been after. You wouldn’t blame the Denver crew for just putting out a new bottle of the old formula, but instead, KHEMMIS have put out something more vulnerable and much more desolate.

Though the previous two records weren’t exactly party city they had the massive riffs straight out of the ZZ TOP and THIN LIZZY books (if those books were being read by PALLBEARER) but the first thing that jumps out at you about Desolation is that it feels a lot darker. The classic metal guitar work from Ben Hutcherson and Phil Pendergast has a lower and more sombre tone to it. The riffs still soar much higher than many dare to fly, especially on Isolation and From Ruin, but there’s also meaty whammy filled riffs like on Maw Of Time which feel more like Zakk Wylde‘s thick heaviness rather than Randy Rhode-like shredding.

The lyrics are written in a bleaker tone too with Isolation speaking of loneliness and mourning “how could I beg for salvation when I’m the only one left to grieve” and the rest of the album following suit until From Ruin which is the welcome light at the end of this lonesome journey, “out of the darkest night, no one could help me find the way, but in the new spring dawn, I find the strength to carry on”. It’s a real passage through a dark patch in the band’s lives the slightly more sombre feeling instrumentals paint the perfect background to the lyrics as you feel the whole band lift you up during the albums closing and empowering curtain call.

Desolation may not be as instantly enjoyable as Hunted given the new album’s weightier subject matter, but it’s the story and meanings that unfold after multiple listens that helps tell this earnest and not the very pretty story. It’s a bolder and more honest record than its predecessor and it’s deserving of just as much, if not more praise.

Rating: 9/10

Desolation is set for release on June 22nd via Nuclear Blast Records.

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