Album Review: Blood Oath - Infernum Rex Diabolus
Reviewed by Carl Black
Listening to the Blood Oath album, Infernum Rex Diabolus, reminds me very much of when I take my annual adventure into drinking Guinness for St. Patrick's Day. I'm not a great fan of “The Black Stuff” but when St Patrick's Day rolls around I always see it sporting to dive in headfirst and to indulge myself in the Irish tipple. It starts off very well, the novelty is there and all is rosey. I then quickly realise why i don't drink the stuff in the first place and start thinking, should I ditch the black stuff and go for something different, more to my personal taste. Then it hits the sweet spot, I've got used to it and now I'm fully fledged member of the Guinness drinking Society and I'm back on it with a Vengeance. Than it's ends in tragedy.
The first tune, Angels To Some Devil's To Others’, is a tribute to the hellraiser movie and is executed finely. Vocals which can be a bit of a make and break as far as death metal is concerned are just on this side of audible. The references are very literal and if you're a fan of the movie you should have a vested interest in this first song if nothing else from the album. It then goes down hill a little. It becomes a little bit generic.
Just when I'm about to reach for the pause button however, the album hits such a sweet spot. ‘Lycanthropic Bood Lust’ and ‘Monuments of Our Ruin’, hit you Square between the eyes and you suddenly realise why we all love and appreciate a bit of death metal every once in a while. They are the slowest on the album and this really gives the band scope to let the riffs breathe and let the drums pound.
Over time they will no doubt develop their style and their songwriting to fully enhance the ideas that are started on this album. The bands history is steeped in the Metal 2 The Masses and the New Blood stage at Bloodstock. And that's exactly were I can see them playing, but a move to the Sophie Lancaster stage and getting a great response from the thousands of death metal fans to flock to this festival.
I'm now off to buy some Guinness, who knows, I might try Guinness twice a year instead of once after listening to Blood Oath.
Did you see when Blood Oath were marooned on Devil's Island? Check it out here.
