Long standing Swedish thrashers Raise Hell are back with a new line up and a new album. Hailing from Stockholm, the four piece return after a nine year absence with the follow up to “City Of The Damned” to bring out their fifth album in 19 years. With a buzz about this return and the promise of a great mix of classic thrash with some heavy melodic parts thrown in to round out the sound, it’s time to see just what the raising hell is all about.
From the off this album grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let go. The furious thrash pace of album opener “Dr. Death” takes firm hold and just doesn’t surrender. With its barrage of relentless riffs, precise rhythm work and venomous vocal delivery, it toes the line between a fine thrash groove and some melo-death elements, but this is hardly surprising given the country the band hail from where if it isn’t grim funeral doom and black metal, or melodic/symphonic power metal, its melodic death metal as standard. Utilising harmony riffs and subtly changing the pace of the tracks as they progress, “Six Feet Under”, “Fallen Domination” and “The Bell Of The Reaper” all continue this thrash assault with some elements of MDM mixed in there to keep it lively.
The melodic aspects of the album though cannot be neglected. “A Blackened Resurrection” has a real melodic death metal feel to it reminiscent of late 90’s era In Flames and Dark Tranquillity. The expressive harmonies and vocal deliveries go well with the steadier paced music and when these elements arise in the more thrash like tracks “In Cold Blood” and “Thank You God”, the atmosphere they create in combination with the heavy thrash and dark feel is fantastic.
There aren’t as many traditional lead sections as such on this album, something which does stand out given how thrash albums are generally known for wild solo’s and breakneck paced shredding, but instead the mix of melodic composition and harmonies along with some soloing on certain tracks keeps it feeling fresh. Combining that with the more death metal friendly vocal delivery, it creates for an interesting merger of thrash and melodic death metal, two genres which at times can go hand in hand if done correctly and the album closer, “Final Hour” does that brilliantly. With its dramatic atmosphere setting intro and pounding heavy groove and raw vocal delivery, it hits on elements across the entire release and wraps it all together in one great track.
Overall, “Written In Blood” is great. Raise Hell are a thrash band, but there are some clear elements of that Scandinavian sound I have mentioned in many of my reviews on here. It just gives the album that extra edge which turns it from a solid thrash album into one you should check out soon. It’s thrash for the death metal fan and death metal enough to be easy to listen to for the thrash fan… Everyone wins!
(8/10 Fraggle)
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