Simon RushworthKrisiun – Forged in Fury (Century Media)
Genre: Death metal
Celebrating 25 years in the death metal scene this year, Krisiun have marked their anniversary in style with Forged in Fury: it’s an opus which should take its place among the trio’s best work.
Why? Because you can almost smell the sweat of the Brazilians’ Sau Paulo rehearsal space on fierce tracks like Soulless Impaler; because producer extraordinaire Erik Rutan has given the album a natural, earthy feel, allowing each instrument space to breathe; and because the Camargo brothers have put their heart, soul and guts into this record.
A quarter of a century gone, and the siblings still burn with the desire to write crushing death metal like Scars of the Hatred, and deliver it with real skill. Krisiun walk their own path, and from Alex Camargo’s distinctive rasp to his brother Max’s pummelling double bass kicks, you can’t mistake the band for anyone else.
There are plenty of highlights here, with Ways of Barbarism standing out for its shifting rhythmic dynamics, and Timeless Starvation bursting vigorously into life after a creepy, unsettling intro, but Forged in Fury flows well as a whole – don’t skip through it, let it play out in full.
If more veteran death metal acts sounded this vibrant after so long in the game, the world would be a better – and noisier – place. Richard Holmes
RUSHONROCK RATED: 8.5/10 Blood brothers