Trench Warfare – Hatred Prayer
3 min read
Band: Trench Warfare
Title: Hatred Prayer
Label: Transcending Obscurity Records
Release date: 9 August 2019
Country: USA
Format reviewed: Digital Promo
I for one welcome our killer robot overlords. Leading the charge to end all humanity, TRENCH WARFARE decimate the weak with a devastating mix of death and black metal of unyielding proportions. “Hatred Prayer” is the first full-length release from the band and they are quick to deliver a massive and relentless assault on the senses. The crushingly thick drumming and utterly engulfing riffs are non stop and will be a good bet for fans of bands like Archgoat, Black Witchery, and Master.
Everything about this band is brutal. The album art conjures images of Ragnarok and the songs are full of savage vitriol and malice. These guys are not a fan of nuclear deterrence.
“Decimate Legions” starts with a sinister introduction into the battlefield with sounds of the robotic legions advancing towards the front. The savagery starts off with an attack of riffs that is clearly meant to decimate your eardrums. TRENCH WARFARE unleash a constant barrage of shredding with a persistent shelling of drumming that keeps the pressure high. “Spare No Wrath”, “Axioms”, and “Barbarous Temperament” continue the ferocious shredding over the muddy wails of percussion.
“Astral Projections” slows things down for the first time with some crushingly satisfying sections and heavier than hell distortions. Ripping your soul right out of your body is one way to achieve astral projection I guess…
The invasion continues with “Evil Shall Triumph”, and “Behead Muhammad” which both launch an volly of riffs and thick nonstop splash and hammering from the drumset artillery. The next two songs on the album were my favourite, with “Young Lord”’s main guitar progressions and vocal style having a tinge of speed and thrash metal attached. While the next track “New Lord” feels like a literal invasion force with its slow eerie start and a chuggy crawl over the bones. Cavernous growls top things off and everything ends in dramatic fashion, breaking out into a blackened swarm before returning to the death march.
Now that the invasion is complete, TRENCH WARFARE continue the onslaught with “Blood Cleansing” and “Sate Thy Lust”. Both tracks continue the heavier than hell shredpocalypse with completely unrelenting pace. While a bit hard to decipher at times, lots of amazing little fills can be heard under the crushing distortions. Things end on a high note with “Hatred Prayer”. Building things up with insidious drums and a wicked main riff, TRENCH WARFARE do not hesitate to go in for the kill. Featuring some of the best drum work on the album and intricate madness overall, the savagery is topped with a short face-melting solo before ending with the haunting sounds of your new robot overlords advancing upon you.
TRENCH WARFARE deliver an onslaught of raw blackened death metal that could easily be the soundtrack to the apocalypse. There is absolutely substance beneath the shelling, but the overwhelming assault of percussions left me shell-shocked at times. “Hatred Prayer” is killer stuff, but for some it could be sensory overload. The throttled-up drumming and thick engulfing riffs are non stop for much of the album, leading to a consistently crushing but occasionally unhinged incoherence. Regardless, the war is over and TRENCH WARFARE have dug themselves in as a force to be reckoned with. 7/10 Metal Yeti
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