ALBUM REVIEW: Scourge Of The Enthroned – Krisiun

Brazil has a long history in heavy metal. Most notably of course, it spawned SEPULTURA, however the South American capital of the heavy metal world also gave birth to black metal legends SACRÓFAGO and more recently the thrash trio NERVOSA. But no conversation of Brazilian metal is complete without KRISIUN. Their brand of intense, traditional death metal has made them one of the biggest extreme metal exports from the country, and their discography, with the exception of a couple of mediocre dips, is of a world class quality. Following the slight disappointment of 2015’s Forged In Fury, which received mixed reviews, the three-piece return with Scourge Of The Enthroned.

And what a return it is. From the opening seconds of the record’s title track right through to the abrupt end of Whirlwind Of Immortality, KRISIUN display an absolute mastery of brutality. Forgoing an intro track, Scourge Of The Enthroned opens with a fairly crushing groove in its title track, before transitioning into chaotic, unrestrained riffing that hits with the force of a freight train. They make a bold statement with their ferocious opening song, showing they are back at full strength and their majesty is not to be denied. Scourge Of The Enthroned is one of the less catchy tracks on the album, but, consequently, one of the most brutal in its savage delivery.

Following the title track, we drive into the two singles released from the record. Demonic III maintains the soul crushing heaviness of its predecessor, but delivers it in a slightly more groove focussed and hookier package. Bursts of chaotic soloing bring the dissonant sense of the opener back into focus, flavouring the track, and a short but very catchy chorus almost guarantees its place in KRISIUN‘s setlist. Meanwhile, Devouring Faith is a more straightforward crusher, keeping the momentum going with mid-paced riff work.

From there, KRISIUN drive into the one-two punch of two of Scourge Of The Enthroned’s strongest tracks – Slay The Prophet and A Thousand Graves. Heavy on the blast beats, Slay The Prophet comes in fast and hard, offering little room for breath until the closing minute of the track brings some groove into play. A Thousand Graves balances the tempo changes perfectly, comfortable both in blasting ferocity and a more mid-tempo stomp, and the final scream of the song’s title is a raw stand out moment. Moving into Electricide, KRISIUN keep the mid-paced heaviness going, before throwing down some enticing leads and moving onto to more up-tempo energy.

Once we hit Abysmal Misery (Foretold Destiny), Scourge Of The Enthroned is beginning to draw to a close but it is by no means winding down. Sinister leads flavour the track in places, adding a subtle, ominous air to the mosh-worthy groove of the chorus and the stop-start riffing around the three-minute mark would work perfectly on stage. The record’s shortest track clocking in at just under four minutes, Abysmal Misery (Foretold Destiny) is a stripped-down blast of savagery. Final song Whirlwind Of Immortality is one of the more ambitious moments on the record, and certainly one of the strongest. Though the crushing heaviness of KRISIUN‘s brand of death metal leaves little room for melody, there a few hints of melodic, but sinister, moments in the lead work scattered throughout Whirlwind Of Immortality. As the song hits the closing minutes, pounding riffs and ominous leads drive the track, before a furious blast of speed brings Scourge Of The Enthroned to a close.

The main issue that plagued KRISIUN‘s previous effort, Forged In Fury, was its lack of memorability. There was nothing objectively bad about the record, it was a solid offering, but the moments where the album demanded your full and undivided attention were sparse. Scourge Of The Enthroned suffers no such plight. KRISIUN‘s eleventh record is a masterclass in bringing traditional, old-school death metal into 2018 with a wall-to-wall delivery of crushing groove, unrestrained musical ferocity and plenty of hooks to keep the record in your mind long after it stops spinning. A tsunami of pure, sonic brutalisation, Scourge Of The Enthroned is an exhausting, but thoroughly rewarding listen, and stands among the strongest in KRISIUN‘s discography.

Rating: 9/10

Scourge Of The Enthroned is set for release on September 7th via Century Media Records.

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