Review of Blood Red Throne - Altered Genesis

I’m convinced that Tchort has found the long-sought-after secret to an 8-day week. Not only does the new Green Carnation album come out this week, but so does Altered Genesis, the new steamroller from Blood Red Throne. Combining these two with his work in Carpathian Forest and prior outputs in Emperor, I’m beginning to believe that he could release a topnotch jazz album if he put his mind and fingers to it. But this isn’t a Tchort solo-project, as the rest of the band is more than up to the task to bring this Florida-meets-Norway vision to fruition.

The guitar duo of Tchort and Død deliver a flurry of meaty, punishing death metal riffage, which is backed up by an actually-noticeable bass performance from Erlend Caspersen. Bernt Moen’s drumming is a crisp and mechanical whirlwind of double bass pummeling and fills. But the coup de grâce is the scorched throat of Mr. Hustler and his Drano-gargling bark. When you wrap up these five in a flawless mix, with a booming low-end and grating guitar tone, it becomes clear that this band is simply fantastic from an aesthetic standpoint.

Taken as a whole, I feel that Altered Genesis falls slightly short of the high mark set by 2003’s Affiliated with the Suffering, but that is like claiming that buffalo wings are better than barbecue wings – both are still very satisfying. For once, an album opens up with an appropriate intro that actually creates an atmosphere of impending devastation. “Death of Birth” is a few minutes of haunting ambience, punctuated by distant sounds of infants crying, rising in volume until “Incarnadine Mangler” bursts forth in a guttural fury. “Mephitication” is the next high point, working in groove-oriented riffs that are more fully developed on the catchy-as-sin next song, “Arterial Lust”. A minor Stockholm aura arises in the crusher known as “State of Darkness, particularly the chunk from 1:22 to 2:15. Perhaps someone of influence could float the idea of a BRT/Bloodbath retro-death tour? The only flaw I’ve run across is the feeling of repetition that arises from time-to-time, but that is usually quickly remedied by a fresh, pounding riff.

Blood Red Throne will never be accused of being too technical, but they trade virtuosity for effectiveness and aural punishment. On their third album, they have settled nicely into their sound, a modern improvement on the Deicide/Cannibal Corpse sound of years past. The way I see it, there is thinking-man’s death metal, and there is “fun” death metal, and this is definitely the latter. For stripped-down, neck-snapping death metal, you need look no further than Altered Genesis.

Release Details

Blood Red Throne

Altered Genesis

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