Hate-Erebos

Listenable Records 2011

With a name like Hate what kind of music would you expect this band to play? Any guesses? I'll give you a hint. The band hail from Poland home of Behemoth, Vador and Lux Occulta. If you guessed extreme black death you'd be right. Celebrating 20 years now in the business Erebos is a land mark achievement in the field of black metal. The craftsmanship on this album is top notch. The music is certainly extreme but there is enough variety to set them apart from the majority of black metal bands today. There are lightning fast drum beats and guitars but there are also nods to thrash and classic metal. The riffs are straight up thrash/death metal in parts which was a nice change of pace. And props has to go to vocalist Adam who does a good job of keeping his voice is restraint. His death metal growl is enjoyable. You can actually make out some of what he is saying which is also nice. Too often in black metal the lead howlers just screech their way through the songs and you lose any sense of impact. Adam is forceful and in command. I like that. For those into black metal this might end up being one of the better albums released lately. Extreme metal needs more groups like Hate that are willing to experiment and offer variety in their music. A very refreshing listen from start to finish Erebos is sure to please fan's of Behemoth, Vador and Immortal.