EnthronedEnthroned have long since proved themselves to be one of the stalwarts of the black metal scene. Ok, some would say they’ve dropped the ball a couple of times in their career and the band might even be regarded as dependable bordering on the predictable by others. But for me, each of their releases has been different enough to make them an interesting band to follow and not just for the hard core of Enthroned fans. On the whole, their albums have mostly been a cut above the pack with some even entering the realms of black metal excellence. At the risk of labouring the point here, I would say the quality of the last three or four albums since Nornagest took over vocal duties set them apart from the pack even more than the original stuff with the band firmly nailing down their own particular homage to late 1990s black metal with style. The ‘new’ Enthroned began with the much hyped Tetra Karcist and then gloriously peaked with Obsidium in 2012 and so the question was always going to be, how do you top that? Well, start by getting a new label and then set about getting back to basics with some decent tunes written deep from within your dark hearts.

I’m not sure I would go so far to say Sovereigns has been put through the Agonia filter, but this release has happily confirmed my faith in both band and label. Eerily Agonia (the production is crisp, faultless, swirling chaos) and typically classic late-period Enthroned in equal measure, Sovereigns has some very cool, subtle moments – it’s rich in great riffs and the odd clever atmospheric drop-in (normally assisted by some superbly timed tremolo guitars) even if a couple of the tracks feel like they may have been tossed in casually at the end for good measure. Enthroned excel at the kind of slowly brooding, pulsing black metal that only really works if you’ve got the killer tunes to go with it, and Enthroned seem to have no shortage of those. Lamp of Invisible Lights, for example, for all its lack of speed, makes up for ferocity with adrenaline-charged venom spitting out at you from its black hole.

Of course, it should go without saying that a black metal staple like Enthroned also do the classic, black metal, mid-tier thrashing pace and blistering speed very well too. Post-Legion-era Marduk in its variable speed and ferocity with perhaps (with a bit of Watain thrown in) would all be fair comparison. Marduk even more so because the reorganisation and departure of the old singer seems to have provided the band with a new lease of life and new purpose. Sure, Sovereigns isn’t going to be winning any awards for innovation but if that’s what you want then you are probably looking in the wrong place. It is a band sticking to what it does best and is a release that sets Enthroned as a confirmed standard bearer for the well-crafted, high-production black metal core. I’m not quite sure where all this is all heading or how long Enthroned can keep ploughing this particular furrow, but if they carry on issuing this level of dependable quality for the foreseeable future, then I’m sure their fan base will be happy.

(7.5/10 Reverend Darkstanley)

http://www.enthroned.be