Scarlet Anger – Dark Reign Review

The vocals are done in a pretty aggressive manner which sometimes gives of a little bit of a Tom Araya vibe, but musically it’s right in that German style...

Released By : Dust On The Tracks

Genre : Thrash Metal

Link : http://scarletanger.com/

 

Lineup:

Joe Block – Vocals

Fred Molitor – Guitars

Jeff Buchette – Guitars

Vince Niclou – Bass

Alan Flammang – Drums

 

Tracklist:

01. New God Rising

02. My Battlefield

03. From Fool To King

04. Game Over

05. Face Of Evil

06. Dark Reign

07. Follow The Order

08. A Tale Of Hate

09. Prince Of The Night

10. Tenfold

11. My Empire Coming Down

12. Scarlet

 

There’s a lot of Thrash Metal going around these days, and at times it can be really hard to find the good releases among the flood of average ones. The new debut album from Luxembourg based Thrashers SCARLET ANGER though is one that definitely falls into the more enjoyable category. Getting it out of the way first, DARK REIGN is not an album filled with any originality or progressive elements…Instead the band has chosen to take the more traditional path. Why it’s enjoyable though is that while a lot of modern day thrash bands are emulation the American formula, SCARLET ANGER take their approach from the German side of things and actually sound a lot like the current iteration of KREATOR. I am also reminded at times of other German acts like DESTRUCTION, ACCUSER and IRON ANGEL. I really don’t like too much generalization when I do reviews, but that’s what happens when you have to try and constantly find different things to say about a genre that follows some pretty strict guidelines.

The album is split into two sections, with CHAPTER 1: KILL THE KING featuring the same five songs that were on the self-titled E.P the band released last year, but I can only presume that they have been re-recorded or at the very least remastered because they sound very aurally sound. The second half of the album CHAPTER 2: …THE KING IS DEAD, LONG LIVE THE KING features six all-new compositions that once again have very good production values. Speaking of the production….It was actually mastered by Jeff Waters, who some of you will recognise from his position as a member of Thrash Metal legends ANNIHILATOR, he does a very good job too as the album sounds meaty but still retains that rough-ish Thrash Metal guitar sound that made the genre what it is today.

The vocals are done in a pretty aggressive manner which sometimes gives of a little bit of a Tom Araya vibe, but musically it’s right in that German style of double-kick drums and a nasty dual-guitar attack. Personal favourites for me were NEW GOD RISING, FROM FOOL TO KING, DARK REIGN and PRINCE OF THE NIGHT but because a lot of the songs on the album have a familiar feel to them than could change at any time. The same-ish feel sort of gets a little bit too much around the middle of the album and I did feel at times like I could have handled a slight change of pace for two minutes or so just to shake things up a bit and get me ready for more in your face ass kickery.

I do like what SCARLET ANGER have done with DARK REIGN, and though it suffers a little here and there due to a few of the songs sounding a little bit too much like the previous one, the album will please those that enjoy the simpler aspects of the Thrash Metal genre. If these guys could work out a way to add a little more melody and even a track here and there with some acoustic guitar or different instruments then they might really be able to challenge for that illusive next step. In summation… A very well played and produced debut album that should stir up enough interest to motivate the band to progress further.

 

Written By ZeeZee

Rating : 7/10

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