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Review: Hail of Bullets - III: The Rommel Chronicles
Hail of Bullets
www.hailofbullets.com
III: The Rommel Chronicles

Label: Metal Blade Records
Year released: 2013
Duration: 45:48
Tracks: 10
Genre: Death Metal

Rating:
4/5


Review online: December 1, 2013
Reviewed by: Christopher Foley
Readers' Rating
How do you rate this release?

Rated 4.11/5 (82.11%) (19 Votes)
Review

Ideal. I was in the market for a face ripping and look who happens to have a new album out. Hail Of Bullets kill, and with some of my favorite death metal characters like the inimitable Martin Van Drunen, Ed Warby and the guys from the oft overlooked Thanatos, you just can't go wrong. For the uninitiated, Hail Of Bullets sound exactly like you would expect judging from their name and clientele; skull splintering Dutch death metal.

III: The Rommel Chronicles is packed to the brim with killing DM, with Van Drunen leading the war charge as proud as ever. He's one of those singers who evoke a rise in energy, with his bile-drenched howls giving just as much as the rest of the instruments do towards heaviness and intensity. Of course the instrumentation here is spot on, with massive riffs, thundering bass, and pummeling drums. Tracks like "DG-7" tower over you, avalanching into chaotic bursts of furious energy, and more focused, groovy tempo shifts: In other words, tracks like "DG-7" crush the life out of you.

Like I said, musically this is spot on, and the riffs across the board here, are fucking ace. Paul and Stephan have a cracking approach to the instrument, serving up a wide array of varied riffs and chilling lead lines. Throughout the album Hail Of Bullets are unrelenting, with plenty of variation between the slower death metal you could identify with Van Drunen's other band, Asphyx, as well as the propulsive, Swedish approach of cauterizing riffs and maniacal drumming. If I haven't already stressed this enough: this album is seriously heavy as fuck.

The production is ideal too, certainly modern in the context of being well recorded, and having a good mix – although there's thankfully none of that clinical drivel to be found. The guitar tone drips absolute filth, with the bass catching it drip tray style, and smearing it across your speakers. Ed Warby's drums sound excellent and professional, and are probably the cleanest aspect of the sound. What I'm getting at here, is that the production really works for the band's sound, and helps III: The Rommel Chronicles come off as one of the stronger releases in the genre in 2013.

You just can't go wrong with Hail Of Bullets. History/war buffs will get a kick from the theme, and death metal fans who just want to smash their head in any direction to dirty riffs, will find plenty of head-smashing material here. Just fucking buy it already!

More about Hail of Bullets...
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