Watain are back with a renewed venom as their 6th album kicks into malicious fury with "Nuclear Alchemy" which was also the first video released a few weeks ago. It is very thundering with the combative thrashing dialed way up.Stay in a blasting fury with equally feral rawness of "Sacred Damnation". This song does carry some more nuanced accents, the overall tone in comparison to but to "the Wild Hunt" proves this to be a much more straightforward black metal album, as they return to their more mean spirited roots. They band could have easily said "This album is going to be a return to our heavier more punishing sound, and they would not have been lying. It's not until things slow down into the more Dissection inspired throb of "Teufelsreich" that it connects with me a feeling the band's personality really bleed into the song.There is a more fiendish rasp to Erik's voice on this song. This brings them back to a place much closer to "Lawless Darkness".
The trio which has been together since "Death's Rabid Darkness" has a chemistry firmly intact, so there is no compromise of their sound.The riff to "Furor Diabolicus" has more of a Marduk like organic rawness to it. This is one of the album's more jack hammering songs, but they still find their way into a gallop as needed. Slicker production value isn't heard until the midway point of this song as more melodic elements are slowly slipped in. The bass is heard as the attack of the guitar gives the song more breathing room. They step on the speed and keep up this album's brisk pace with " A Throne Below" that I had to give a few listens to so it would not blow right by me. Repeat listens uncover some more sinister sonics hidden in the blur our tempestuous riffing. While equally intense and in your face there is enough of a groove to the less blast beaten "Ultra" that makes it stand out from the pack.
There is more density to the thrash of " Towards the Sanctuary". This song gets darker , the vocals on the verses slither with effects to bring a shift of color. This album slowly becomes more dynamic, straying from the more straight up blast beats. "The Fire Of Power" returns to a marginally slower pulse though the song retain it's rougher early Bathory like rough edges. This sounds like what most fans of this band including myself are going to want. There are some big classic metal moments that recall back when Metallica was metal in a few places.It's fairly typical for these guys to close the album with the longest song, this time it's only seven minutes. The first minute is spent droning on the opening riff. The song itself is very dark and apocalyptic, thanks in part to the sample of what sounds like a radio playing a Nazi speech or some type of sermon in the background. Weirdly it is also ponderous instrumental. No blazing guitar solos to dazzle you with they just soak you in the mood. br />
If you were waiting on these guys to pull a Behemoth like sell out, then keep waiting.I'll give this one a 9.5 though I have a feeling it will grow on me, however the instrumental sounds good, but I think still keeps it from being a perfect album, which I think both "Lawless Darkness" and "Sworn to the Dark" are. It's a dense well produced album that sounds great even if at first listen it sounded like a lateral move. I think these songs sit along side their exsisting body of work well and the more I listen to it the more in fits into their legacy.
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