ALBUM REVIEW: Glacial Domination – Frozen Soul
January 2021: a howling Arctic wind brings forth the vicious debut full-length from Texan death metallers FROZEN SOUL. Its impact is immediate – or as immediate as you can get in death metal at least – one of the finer entries in a booming old school revival that remains firmly in the upper tier of the scene even with all the quality that’s come since. Crypt Of Ice was and still is an excellent record, but its follow-up Glacial Domination is even better.
It is proof enough really of the high regard in which FROZEN SOUL are held that this sophomore effort features guest appearances from Matt Heafy of TRIVIUM, John Gallagher of DYING FETUS, Reese Avali of CREEPING DEATH and Blake Ibanez of POWER TRIP, and yet it seems even more of a flex that the band have released all three of the songs on which these individuals appear as singles. The fact is that they don’t need to play any of these cards too close to their chest, as what remains up their sleeves is still just as strong.
That’s not to say the guest features aren’t all killer though. The title track, co-written with Heafy, stands out especially, with the TRIVIUM frontman’s impact keenly felt in the track’s more melodic riffing and brief but ripping guitar solos, while Gallagher’s trademark gutturals help the band to push into proper knuckle-dragging brutal death territory on Morbid Effigy. Moments like these mark FROZEN SOUL out as slightly more diverse songwriters here than one might have said of the straight BOLT THROWER worship of their debut. Whether it’s a thick groove – still probably the best tool in their arsenal – a fast, thrashy part, or a well-timed interlude or dynamic break, this band are the real deal and they’ve nailed down every death metal essential you could ask for.
They also sound better this time around. Co-produced by Heafy and the returning Daniel Schmuck, Glacial Domination sounds crisper, sharper – colder even – than its predecessor. The guitars cut to the bone like the harshest icy wind, while the rhythm section of Samantha Mobley (bass) and Matt Dennard (drums) places even more power behind the band’s blizzard-like force. As mentioned, there are a few moments of respite too though – mainly passages of pulsating synth work which tip their hats very clearly to John Carpenter’s The Thing in another very suitable match to the band’s frosty themes. These break up the onslaught well, just the occasional pause for breath which keeps the riffs feeling fresh and hard and in turn sees the band make light work of the album’s 44-minute runtime.
That does mean that picking highlights is kind of pointless here; from the sudden thrashing of opener Invisible Tormentor, via the killer double header of Frozen Soul (always badass when a band does that) and Assimilator, all the way through to the Godzilla-inspired punishing of closer Atomic Winter, Glacial Domination is best enjoyed in full even though pretty much every one of these tracks would work just as well on their own. It also helps that it’s quite hooky for a death metal album; most of its grooves are intuitive and instantaneous, while vocalist Chad Green is actually quite intelligible for the genre at least and he often resorts to the classic barking of the title of a track in a manner that listeners will find easy to pick up and bark back.
In sum then, FROZEN SOUL had already proven themselves as one of the best bands in the new wave of old school death metal with their debut and yet here they’ve somehow found room for improvement. More varied, better produced and with hooks and grooves that burrow just that little bit deeper, Glacial Domination is unlikely to be beaten in this style of death metal all year.
Rating: 9/10
Glacial Domination is set for release on May 19th via Century Media Records.
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