South African thrashers Infanteria release their third album, “Patriarch”, on the 7th of June. An eight-track monster that sounds so fresh and intense it will blow you away.
A strong and aggressive opening in the form of “Burnt Relic” shows these guys mean business; a relentless drum beat with savage riffs paves the way for Hall to snarl and scream his way through the track with stunning effect, his solo at the backend of the track is killer, a kicking way to start the album. “Raging Bastards” continues the onslaught with heavy riffs and a thunderous drum and bass beat but with a slight difference as Hall switches the vocals up between melodic and a Randy Blythe style screaming, pulling double duty is never easy but Hall does it with consummate ease as his guitar work and vocal performance proves, a serious contender for track of the album. “Into The Depths” is an eight-minute opus that opens with a slow chugging start before making way for an uptempo metal monster, a midway breakdown transforms it into thrashfest with Hall laying down some killer gruff vocals while the guitars shred like nobody’s business, a simply stunning track that will have mass appeal. “All I’ve Ever Lost” is an acoustic interlude that serves as a nice bridge between the two longest tracks on the album. “Swansong” comes in at just under eight minutes and gives you the whole spectrum from soft acoustic to full-on metal madness, tearing it up with cutting riffs, pounding drums and a whopper bass line with Hall giving an impressive vocal display switching it up between clean and growled vocals, a nice mellow breakdown midway through gives a brief respite before the song builds to a crashing crescendo that plays out to the end, a real standout track. “Embrace The Trauma” turns the dial up to ten with its blistering pace and power, built on a pulsating drum beat backed up with meaty riffs and bass line it kicks the hell out of you,
Hall’s vocals are cool, sounding like a cross between Bobby Blitz, Randy Blythe and Max Cavalera, a kick-ass track. “Repent Through Orders You Seek” is a straight-up thrasher with pummeling drums, gritty riffs, a buzzing bass line with Hall channelling his inner Hetfield with his snarling approach to the vocals, a killer track that sets the finale up nicely. Title track “Patriarch” closes the album in epic fashion with a nice slow acoustic opening that has Hall showing his versatility as he serenades with a soothing low tone, all is fine or so it seems until the track takes a turn and explodes with a massive wall of sound in the shape of sharp riffs, booming bass and a kicking drum beat, a killer solo backed up by a brutal drum beat bring another turn to the song as it picks the pace up even more and goes down a darker heavier route with a frantic beat in true thrash fashion, another ripper solo and drum standoff ensues as the track soars before Hall comes back in with some seriously gruff vocals, that are awesome before it all falls back into a nice mellow outro, a finer track you will be hard pushed to find.
This is a really well-put-together album and such an easy listen, it will be on heavy rotation for a while
“Patriarch” is out 17th of June do not miss it
Review: Conor
Tracklist:
1. Burnt Relic ISRC # usdy42245513
2. Raging Bastards ISRC # usdy42245514
3. Into The Depths ISRC # usdy42245515
4. All I’ve Ever Lost ISRC # usdy42245516
5. Swansong ISRC # usdy42245517
6. Embrace The Trauma ISRC # usdy42245518
7. Repent Through Orders You Seek ISRC # usdy42245519
8. Patriarch ISRC # usdy42245520
Infanteria are:
Chris Hall Vocals/Guitar
Tin Leibbrandt Bass
Adrian Langeveld Drums
www.instagram.com/infanteriametal