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Knell – Zero Hour – Album Review

....and the heat keeps rising in Chile!

Source // f1.bcbits.com

What the hell is going on in Chile? We keep receiving albums from this South American hotbed of Metal creativity and they keep blowing us away every single time! Next up, Knell; purveyors of extreme Blackened-Death Metal and a veritable feast for lovers of Krisiun, Vomitory and the more progressive moments of Sarcófago.

A sonic onslaught of mountainous proportions – labelling Knell as merely ‘heavy’ doesn’t quite cut it – these boys are thankfully much more than just a blast of unintelligible noise; intricate melodies, astounding songwriting and an incredible use of varying tempos don’t just maintain attention they seep into your soul, wave after wave of crushing riffs engulfing headspace in a manner all too rarely seen. Much more than the term technical Death Metal allows, Knell appear capable of anything; the enthralling yet creepy ambient interlude semi-hidden within the corrosive blasts of “Mächtenkrieg” hinting at the morbidly curious soundscapes the band could (and maybe should) employ more often.

Highlights are endless. The verses of “Bright Lights” contain moments that feel like Black Metal legends Emperor are officially back before harnessing intricate and traditional Death Metal riffing to circumnavigate the spectrum of Black/Death Metal. A huge gospel choir refrain adds to the overriding epic nature of this outstanding and endlessly inventive track. The initial off-kilter tones of “El Descenso” unnerve as they undulate before crashing head-long into the kind of broken, beaten riffing Krisiun excel at. A short and sweet instrumental well worthy of inclusion and a fine counterpoint to the forceful conclusion of “The Fourth Planet”, a second instrumental that favours a traditional Heavy Metal design and wraps up a virtually flawless album.  

For a debut record Zero Hour is seriously impressive. The death knell has been rung and Knell are the bell-ringers. Worship them! 9/10

About Chris Jennings (1963 Articles)
I love metal. Always have. Always will. As editor of Worship Metal - a site dedicated to being as positive about metal and its myriad of sub-genres as possible - my aim is to 'worship' metal through honest reviews, current news and a wide variety of features; offering the same exposure to underground bands as we do to mainstream/well known acts. Our mantra; the bands are partners and we exist to serve the bands \m/

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