ALBUM REVIEW: Imperial Congregation – Blood Red Throne

Death metal is a surprisingly versatile genre and has expanded dramatically since it first roared into life. We now have progressive, technical and melodic variants, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg, there are entire universes of musical depth to explore in the scene’s outer limits. Norway’s BLOOD RED THRONE however, don’t have any time for that. Imperial Congregation is their tenth full length, and, like its predecessors, it’s a no frills, old school metal album. This is death metal at its most rigidly traditional; brutal and barbaric and designed to be played loud as hell. If the recent RIVERS OF NIHIL release was a death metal equivalent of a precision engineered blade, this is a gnarled and heavy club made from a mammoth bone.

The likes of Conquered Malevolence for example are exactly what you’d expect from a band like this. It’s a fast and unrelenting song, all low register growls and pummelling blast beats and utterly committed to being as heavy as possible. Transparent Existence on the other hand is a bit more sluggish, rambling along at a midtempo pace like a stoned ogre and with some surprisingly energetic guitar histrionics in the middle.

Inferior Elegance is another darkly enjoyable headbanger. This one has an inhuman vocal performance from singer Yngve ‘Bolt’ Christiansen, who sounds like he’s on the verge of madness in the tortured screams of the chorus. 6:7 is likely to be a fan favourite too, the band picking the pace up again and rattling through a neck-wrecking, hair-flailing barnstormer. BLOOD RED THRONE only really have two modes, but they mix the warp speed songs up with the groovier ones just enough to make the album varied enough to avoid seeming repetitive.

In fact, the only time BLOOD RED THRONE push the envelope is on the closing Zarathustra. This one starts with an ominous funeral doom riff and then develops into a gravel-throated and darkly atmospheric seven-minute mini-epic. It’s got the same violence-inducing energy as its fellows, but in a slightly more measured way. It’s a strong track to finish on and, despite the length, it doesn’t outstay its welcome.

Imperial Congregation then is basically the archetype of what BLOOD RED THRONE do. It’s interchangeable with the rest of their discography and completely predictable from start to finish. However, if you enjoyed Fit To Kill, Souls Of Damnation or indeed any of their previous records, chances are you’ll like this one too.

Rating: 8/10

Imperial Congregation is set for release on October 8th via Nuclear Blast Records. 

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