{"id":21771,"date":"2014-07-28T00:00:54","date_gmt":"2014-07-28T00:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=21771"},"modified":"2014-09-30T15:02:39","modified_gmt":"2014-09-30T15:02:39","slug":"album-review-eastern-front-descent-into-genocide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/album-review-eastern-front-descent-into-genocide\/","title":{"rendered":"EASTERN FRONT – Descent Into Genocide (2014) | Album \/ EP Reviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

EASTERN FRONT
Descent Into Genocide<\/strong><\/span>
\n\"\"
\nCandlelight (2014)<\/span>
Rating: 7\/10<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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It\u2019s been four years since Ipswich-based black metallers Eastern Front released their 2010 debut effort Blood On Snow<\/em>. The war-torn quartet has been busy touring and writing the music for this, their sophomore effort, in the hope of attracting more attention to their already promising armoury. <\/p>\n

The guys formed in 2006, with guitarist Holocaust being the only original member left since the 2007 departure of vocalist Mike Taylor. Even so, it\u2019s been a reasonably steady line-up ever since, with bassist Destroyer having joined in 2008 and a year later Nagant on vocals, while drummer Blitz was enlisted in 2012. <\/p>\n

Although the debut album was a reasonably hostile affair, it had an air of the unremarkable about it and was contemporary by design with its war-obsessed theme, and so it\u2019s no surprise that Descent Into Genocide<\/em> continues down that same debris-strewn path. Belligerent drums which shatter bones, snarling, sneering vocals, a barbaric bass and the expected abrasive, scathing guitars means that Eastern Front Mark II is still a pretty formidable beast harbouring some wonderfully catchy segments of mayhem from the off. <\/p>\n

Opener \u2018Retribution Sky\u2019 has some nice insertions of gothic instrumentation to add to the already pummelling rhythm section where every instrument shines; the drums are clear and precise, the bass is heavy and rumbles, the guitars are sturdy and deliver a rush of blood to the head and Nagant\u2019s vocals do exactly what you\u2019d expect in black metal territory. \u2018The Hanging Of Faith\u2019 opts for starker climes with that pallid guitar sound and the avalanche of Blitz\u2019s percussion; it\u2019s initially a militant, mid-tempo charge that suddenly lurches into an outburst of vile vocal yaps and a machine-gun drum assault. It\u2019s good stuff, if generic. <\/p>\n

Of all the tracks, there are three which really stand out for me. \u2018Blitzfreeze\u2019 is a truly demonic sounding piece of wretched blast-beat metal; it\u2019s a superb marrying of darker, orchestral majesty fused with faster, scratchy passages particularly in the fantastic drum attack and Nagant\u2019s hideous vocal snarls. Meanwhile, \u2018Katyn Forest\u2019 is a peculiar, simmering act of defiance beginning in slow, atmospheric fashion before the torrent of racing guitars and deep, ashen melody. My favourite track on the album has to be \u2018Ghouls Of Leningrad\u2019, though, a jarring thrash metal assault hinting at Mayhem with its smirking menace but incorporating macabre melody within its frozen framework of barbed guitar work and again, that formidable rear-guard of Blitz\u2019s drumming. <\/p>\n

I have to admit that I\u2019m quite surprised by this opus, and expected it to gradually descend into the mediocre. While it\u2019s not top-notch black metal, the band has made the necessary improvements from the debut and produced a record that has more highs than lows. It\u2019s important that the British black metal scene is recognised for producing quality music. Although this opus is one offering modern dynamism, it\u2019s still one that deserves your attention if you call yourself a black metal fan. <\/p>\n

I have to admit to preferring the darker, more bewitching sounds of acts like Witchclan, but Descent Into Genocide<\/em> is still a solid foray from the trenches out onto the war field.<\/p>\n

Neil Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

EASTERN FRONTDescent Into Genocide Candlelight (2014)Rating: 7\/10 It\u2019s been four years since Ipswich-based black metallers Eastern Front released their 2010 debut effort Blood On Snow. The war-torn quartet has been busy touring and writing the music for this, their sophomore effort, in the hope of attracting more attention to their already promising armoury. The guys […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,1440],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-album-ep-reviews","category-eastern-front"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21771"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21771\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21777,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21771\/revisions\/21777"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}