Gospel of the Horns - Realm of The Damned

March 12, 2009

Reviewer: J. A. Burt

The land of Australia has long been a locale rich with high quality blackened thrash bands, and Gospel of the Horns is certainly at or near the forefront of the field when it comes to delivering the ugly and evil.  Unfortunately not a very prolific band, (only two full-lengths since their inception in 1993), GotH has finally graced us with Realm of the Damned, the follow-up to their 2005 debut A Call to Arms, and it’s definitely been worth the wait as it’s a fantastic entry into the genre.

While the debut leaned further towards straight black metal than thrash, Realm of the Damned features a much punkier sound, with very anthemic calls to war, at times almost resembling a blackened Oi.  Gang shouted vocals over extremely catchy, highly enjoyable tracks such as “Death Sentence”, and “Trial by Power” create an empowering, almost optimistic atmosphere, and I’d imagine these tunes, along with other album highlights like “Strength Through Fear” go over EXTREMELY well in the live setting.  If only they’d play the states.  Oh well, one can dream. 

The production here is a little strange, with Howitser’s vocals very far back in the mix and distant sounding, but I don’t really see it as a problem.  It’s unique, and while rendering the lyrics almost entirely indecipherable, doesn’t detract from the fact that he possesses one of the most evil-sounding voices in all of black metal.  Realm of the Damned slows down a bit in the middle, and the first half is definitely better than the second, but all together it’s a magnificent offering from a band that would certainly be doing us all a favor if they halved the time between releases.  Get this.

Release Date: February, 2007
Label: Invictus Productions

TRACK LISTING

1. Intro/Aggression for Blood
2. Trial by Power
3. Death Sentence
4. Retribution
5. Blood and Iron
6. Realm of the Damned
7. 1915
8. Resiliance
9. Strength Through Fear
10. Outro

Total playing time: 38:10

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