With its official detonation now less than twenty-four hours away, the crypt keepers at Metal Hammer bring extreme metal fans the sordid sounds of The Barren Throne, the latest long player from Iceland-based death metal leviathans, BENEATH, in its entirety!
Scorching with a inexorable fifty-three minutes of technical death metal severity through eleven new tracks, on The Barren Throne, BENEATH encapsulate melody, atmosphere and structure within its meticulously arranged blasts and frantic guitar tirades. Centered lyrically and conceptually around the idea of inevitable self-consumption, the follow-up to 2012’s Enslaved By Fear marks BENEATH‘s first release with new vocalist, Benedikt Natanael Bjarnason, who joined the lineup last June. The album’s massive production was achieved by the Wieslawski brothers of famed Hertz Studios in Poland (Behemoth, Dead Infection, Vader, Decapitated), the end result yielding a complex and procedural, yet dynamic album that is currently reaping critical hails from fans and media alike.
No Clean Singing crowns the offering “one of the best death metal records of the year,” furthering demanding, “Buy this shit immediately if you want dynamic, intricate death metal with a touch of somberness and depressive melody.” In a near perfect rating, Sea Of Tranquility dubs The Barren Throne, “a stellar example of how brutality and technicality can work well together, as BENEATH have crafted some really memorable and punishing tunes here that satisfy those who crave extreme heaviness and complexity,” while Heavy Metal Tribune adds, “the band’s ability to play at such speed and intensity is nothing short of impressive.” Notes Metal Hammer, “As precisely calibrated as the Hadron Collider, and arguably more powerful, this five-piece play dense, juggernaut-groove death metal that spits out bewildering brutality, unholy, epic atmosphere and moments of radiant melody with the kind of conviction that could outstare the gods… Monstrous, magnificent and probably not recommended for anyone with a dodgy ticker, this is death metal that scoops up huge handfuls of the genre’s primal murk, but played with a technical, whirlwind brilliance that could perform a blood eagle on any modern death metal band.”
Test your ticker with the sounds of The Barren Throne, now playing at Metal Hammer RIGHT HERE.
Formed in the winter of 2007/2008, the members of BENEATH have all been active in the Icelandic metal scene for some years, with current and former connections to Sororicide, Changer, Atrum, Azoic and Diabolus. Following their live debut supporting The Black Dahlia Murder in January 2009 and winning the inaugural Icelandic finals for the Wacken Open Air Metal Battle, BENEATH became the first Icelandic band to perform at the Wacken Open Air festival in August 2009. More festival appearances followed, amongst others Death Feast Open Air in 2010 and Neurotic Deathfest in 2011. In February 2010, BENEATH released their debut Hollow Empty Void EP on Mordbrann Musikk which landed them a union with Unique Leader Records.
The Barren Throne will be released via Unique Leader tomorrow, April 29th, 2014. Order yours now at THIS LOCATION.
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