#Haradrim Death Of Idols for #MetalChronicles

Band: Haradrim
Title: Death of Idols
Label: Trust No One Recordings
Release date: 23 June 2023
Country: Sweden
Format reviewed: High-quality Digital Recording

Last year I didn’t pay attention to this album, just because… well, we all know: there’s so much stuff around that it’s impossible to listen to everything. The other day I was listening to it and I instantly decided to review it, now that we have the opportunity to write about albums from up to a year ago in the zine. Which is great (and also, more stress, I mean, like there was not enough current music around… ahhh).

Haradrim is a quite new band (it was founded in 2021 if I’m not wrong), and gave it all with their debut album “Death of Idols”. And yes, I like it a lot. I’d dare to say, it’s an album I’ll be spinning a lot of times now that I have reached it. It has so many appealing elements, and the music is amazing, blending different styles and elements in it. It has a Black Metal basis, mixed with Crust (with those typical d-beat drum patterns), and also some Speed (when you start listening to the song “Conquest” you’ll see)… A lot of catchy choruses making the sound a bit epic, fantastic guitar work (at solos, riffs, great melodies)…

The lineup in this album is:
Anton Palmborg – guitars and vocals (maybe you know him from the band Karmanjaka, and also in Folkmord)
Dennis Sjögren – bass (in Folkmord too)
Isak Nilsson – drums

As I said before, this Swedish trio plays Black Metal with the high octane of Crust Punk, it distills a big amount of energy and also very powerful guitars. I can recognize Anton’s signature here, I was listening to a lot to the last album by Karmanjaka, “Gates of Muspel”, which I had the pleasure to review for the zine too. And it has quite similarities with “Death of Idols” in terms of the guitar work. Some beautiful and even epic melodies (like in the second half of “Venus Falling”, along with a vibrant solo) give this album that special touch.

Which is outstanding too in this album is the percussion. Running at full throttle most of the time, but also letting us enjoy some calm at breakdowns, like in “Defiling of Spirit”. And even defying the laws of speed and coordination: when I listen to “Conquest” my whole body is consumed by fire, the same fire that this track distills due to its frantic speed along with the brilliant tremolo riffs and the audible bass pulse. Isak is such a beast!

The bass is almost omnipresent, clearly audible and adding a lot of depth to the songs. In “The Price of Compliance” it has a very predominant sound, bringing those low and deep pulses to life for our delight. Also in “Acheron”, I really love listening to the bass so clear and powerful; Dennis is the bringer of strength, which adds some extra “passion” to the music. At least for me.

What to say about vocals… I’m totally mesmerized by Anton’s voice, I listened to him before in “Gates of Muspel” by Karmankaja, along with Tim “Skallagrim” Svanberg, their voices gave me goosebumps in that album and Anton sounds totally outstanding in Haradrim. In this band, he performs with the exact amount of raspiness to not become “too much forced”, it sounds naturally dark, impressive.

Starting with the highly energetic opener “Death of Idols”, where these guys already show all their potential; running fast through tracks like “Godless” and “Nero”, having your senses pummeled like in “Demigod” and being cradled by amazing guitar solos like in “Tyrant”, until you reach the epicness contained in the closing track “Ashes of Warsaw”, wow… I highly recommend Haradrim’s experience to all of you. For me it’s 9/10 Sílvia

Band
Bandcamp
Instagram
Facebook
Spotify

Label
Website
Facebook
Bandcamp
Instagram

9/10 Epic Storm
**Please support the underground! It’s vital to the future of our genre**
#WeAreBlessedAltarZine
#TheZineSupportingTheUnderground