• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Ah, Hate Eternal. I'm always willing and curious to give them a try despite them not having done much for me in the past. Upon Desolate Sands is quite alright if taken by various passages here and there. There are a few guitar parts that catch my attention on every listen and the same can be said for the drums, which sometimes kind of break apart but without sounding out of place and, better, when there's some maniacal pounding (not enough). But I find the album suffers from every other Hate Eternal album I've heard: It's mostly monotone, clinical and kind of by-the-numbers, like a band just playing it safe for its base. It's not bad—decent, actually—but I'm still waiting for this band to make me pick up the air guitar and headbang like a maniac. Maybe next time.