Phoenix Rising

"and thought has become my enemy?

What a great line, I've criticized "K.K. Warslut" many times for the quality of their lyrics, most of them remind me of something my 14 years old self with misanthropic vibes would have written, but that phrase describing paranoia was incredible.

"Phoenix Rising" starts being an antithesis of the previous album, after a brief spoken intro all the instrumentation starts in an intense and rampant way, you can even hear the sound of bombs in the background when the first riffs are heard, here there is no previous atmosphere created, D666 starts with an intense song that manages to replicate those catchy choruses that worked so well on "Unchain the Wolves", but fans of the more constructed and melodic moments of this band have nothing to fear, although the first few bars of the album go down a more aggressive path it gains in melodic elements as it progresses.

I think that one of the most remarkable facts of this work is how the more melodic elements work as a piece in the gear and not as a goal, it goes from being long and complex with regard to the previous album, to being specific. The atmospheric sounds outside of the instrumentation are hardly used, giving the listener space to focus on the real protagonist of this album, the guitar, which with its catchy riffs, extremely harmonic picking and aggressive passages stands out during the 40 minutes.

And another thing present during the 40 minutes of this work is the consistency of the sound, you can tell that the recording of the album took little time and that allows it to sound homogeneous, this can be appreciated even in the songs "Phoenix Rising" which is a rework of a song already written in 1990 and "The Eternal Glory of War" that already came out in their first ep.

Honestly I think that even though it has been done many times before, I find it impossible not to talk about the songs "I Am the Wargod" and "Lone Wolf Winter" because they are the most outstanding songs on the album, and rightfully the most famous of the band along with a couple of others. Both master to perfection what is by default D666's most characteristic style, one due to an incredible intro that comes from a build up that is so incredibly good that the rest of the song, as good as it is, seems inferior to those first two minutes of pure climax. The other has a simply epic finale that combines the best chorally sung lyrics of the album with a beautiful riff while the raspy voice of "K.K. Warslut" floods the scene, it's such a good ending that I'm honestly disappointed it wasn't used as the end of the album.

There is not much more I can say about these hackneyed songs, what I can point out is that sometimes getting this high can be a problem if you don't keep up the level and although the album is solid with hardly any weak moments of note, the mere fact of the existence of the two aforementioned songs makes the rest of the work less memorable (with the exception of the eponymous track), perhaps also affected by its lack of variety supported by the homogenous sound. Even so, this album clearly raised the standard quite remarkably.

But as we have already commented, the act of rising too high means you end up falling down...

Destroyer 666 is fuckin crazy and unbelievably killer band. One of my all-time favourites. I love them. They released some of the best records ever in the history of extreme metal music and I am sure that more are to come, even though "Wildfire" is my least favourite album in their discography yet. But such "Unchain the Wolves" and "Phoenix Rising" are for me the real essence of old school, uncompromising metal! Everything about those albums is perfect and from start to finish I worship every sound on them. Both are equally killer, both have some of the best songs Destroyer 666 has composed and both are absolutely recommended. Here I want to write few words about "Phoenix Rising", although I don’t even know where to start. Magnificence of this record is beyond me and it's so damn good that instead of typing these words I would rather prefer to listen to it and bang my fuckin head like crazy maniax, because this album doesn't let you sit peacefully. But I'll do my best haha! Here we go...

Well, the biggest strength of Destroyer 666 music is I suppose their ability to combine harshness, violence and aggression of old school metal (that would have parts of death, thrash, heavy, speed and black metal in equal measures) with irresistible catchiness and hooky riffs. Their music can sound vicious as hell, be aggressive and just damn vulgar, but there will be some melodies and memorable parts also – like choruses, particular riffs or whatever else that makes every song sound like the best metal anthems of war you'll ever hear in your life. It does fuckin feel like not even a single song on "Phoenix Rising" is weak, there's no room wasted for fillers and unnecessary stuff. Destroyer 666 aims to kill you with every sound of their music and they truly do succeed.

Ferocious and aggressive sound makes you feel like you're under relentless, inexorable attack. And this unstoppable cannonade of malicious deathriffage seeks no prisoners, but victims. It wants your blood! Whether the music is neckbreaking fast, mid paced or epic, slow – nevermind what patterns the band uses, it always works perfectly and the music is brilliantly composed and performed. The balance between all these different tempos and feelings has also been done in best possible way. And with the top notch production "Phoenix Rising" sounds powerful and vicious, I cannot imagine a better way for such music to sound.

As you can see I can complement this album over and over. Obviously I have my favourites songs here, like for example the grand "The Eternal Glory of War", "I Am The Wargod (Ode To The Battle Slain)", "Lone Wolf Winter". But there's also the truly bonebraking "Pheonix Rising" and "Rise of the Predator". Yeah, we have here great songs from start to finish and with something like 40 minutes duration this record is a great listen. So I absolutely recommend it. It's been reissued several times, also on vinyl with great new artwork from Z.Bielak, the sound is perfect, the whole presentation also, so there's no excuse for not having it in your collection!

Standout tracks: "The Eternal Glory of War", "I Am The Wargod (Ode To The Battle Slain)", "Lone Wolf Winter"
Final rate: 90/100

So, if you've just come from my review of new album "Defiance", welcome again to Deströyer 666, but this time welcome to what is in my opinion one of this decades best extreme metal albums - "Phoenix Rising". By way of following on from "Defiance" the elements that were present, if unsuccessful in their execution on that record, are the exact basis of the success that is "Phoenix Rising". Here we have eight cuts of prime black/thrash metal, with a middle five songs of such staggering outlandish brilliance that feels like a boxer allowing you to settle during rounds 1 and 2 before beating the absolute shit out of you in the next five. A heavy experience I'm sure you can imagine.

Let's dive straight in. From songs three to seven - "Phoenix Rising", "I Am The Wargod (Ode To The Battle Slain)", "The Eternal Glory Of War", "Lone Wolf Winter", "Ride The Solar Winds" - Deströyer are imperious, untouchable, and "I Am The Wargod" is the king of these five princely songs. Beginning with a soft acoustic sombre introduction, followed by the best whammy dive bomb you'll ever hear moving straight into a lead riff that perfectly marries atmosphere, technicality and outright thrashing brutality, all before a brooding, misanthropic slower middle section where solos fly off in different directions and then yet more speedy electrifying thrash, it's no wonder Deströyer always play this live and the hairs still rise after many, many listens.

But there's no time to recover from that assault before "The Eternal Glory Of War" is upon us. Christened by the sound of marching soldiers and the kind of lead riff courtesy of the guitar of Shrapnel, to us (Ian to his mummy), that "Defiance" sorely misses, D666 ably demonstrate they are no mug at composing both fast and slower. Now honestly, how many extreme metal bands can you say truly master the medium and slow parts rather than sounding as if those bits are stuck there for the sake of variations in speed? "Lone Wolf Winter"... well it's as good as "I Am The Wargod", at a slightly higher average speed and with a middle refrain of I think I'm a wolf/ But then I'm fucking crazy!" that simply cannot be ignored. The pedal-heavy, clean vocal led, spiralling technicality of the dual-guitar assault in it's second half is a sign of a band over-flowing with confidence and creativity.

By the time "Ride The Solar Winds" emerges with yet another fantastic lead riff, built on the twin towers of technicality and accessibility, my head is in such a daze that one could easily forget its a song 95% of extreme bands would kill for, yet its bettered by its three predecessors. So is there anything to fault with "Phoenix Rising"? The sound is perfect for the style - heavy, clear yet unmerciful; composition and execution of riffs is so great that noone else sounds like it; the drumming of Mersus never steals the limelight but will never allow you to question it; and KK Warslut spits his songs of war and invincibility with a proud elegance. So I'm going to have to say, no there isn't. It even doesn't outstay it's welcome, finishing after eight songs and 40 minutes where from the first to the last the sound is of a band perfecting their assault, and in turn raising the bar on what can be done in the 21st century when combining thrash, black and death metal without a hint of looking over their shoulders.

Originally written for Rockfreaks.net

This album is a quencher. Allow me to explain. For a long time I had been looking for a death metal album with ideal amounts of black thrash elements. I much prefer to listen to death metal that contains those influences than a black metal band that has too much death metal on it i.e. early Marduk. As far as another band that does something similar to this but nowhere near as good is Vader. I was so disappointed with their album Litany. It was stale, predictable and didn’t do a thing for me. And then I heard Phoenix Rising by Destroyer 666. This is a record I sure can get used to. And since I hold a lot of Australian death metal bands in high esteem, it further cemented credibility. I now know where to get my warring fix and the factions are at it again. Phoenix Rising is certainly atop my death “go-to” albums.

Well, what can I say? K.K. Warslut and Shrapnel know how to administer the brutal thrash riffs and there’s even some epic riffages to the songs. These guys get all the mileage they can on those fast necks and then some. The soloing is sharp. The speed tempos are masterstrokes of conflagration. Deceiver’s drums pound with the fury of Dave Lombardo in his prime. Everything is so fast and decisive that his drumming is what really puts this record firmly as superior thrash. On Ride the Solar Winds there is also some good amount of blasting like something Frost does. I like how he can effortlessly slow down on the middle and then kick it into gear with some machine beat fills. If you want to hear a death metal album with real strength on the hits over some killer riffs, you better pick this one up. This is one of those releases where the drumming is so awesome it makes you visualize the player doing it exactly as you would imagine how it should be done. So not only are you getting authoritarian drumming, you’re getting a playing style that is close to what Slayer authored in Haunting the Chapel. So many death and thrash bands have tried to master that but so few have come close but in this album I think they pull it off but with a bit of their own style too of course.

Let me get down to the bass playing. Now, Destroyer 666 has some black metal mechanics in their music but what puts them more into the death metal style is the bass playing. Bullet Eater is a good name for him because he absorbs everything from Shrapnel, every advance from Warslut and every dodge from Deceiver. But most of all, the bass playing here is front and center and aggressive. This is by far, the best bass playing I have ever heard on a death metal album. The Eternal Glory of War is also my favorite death metal track ever and it is the bass that really puts it into that little hall of fame. You will know what I am talking about if you hear it. Wait for that splendid Wehrmacht march at the beginning of the song and you will know what total war and destruction in metal should sound like. When that tune comes on, I can feel the blood rush. I Am the War God has another cool bassline towards the end. It’s a little more muted but properly so since Warslut’s riffs go for the raw effect of speed and dominance in a fast black metal approach. Check out the great bass chords filling Ride the Solar Winds too.Lone Wolf Winter is another piece of greatness and has some more Slayer superior sounding riffs. The lyrics again, never fail to amaze and excite me to no end. Warslut’s vocal style fit perfectly. They are of the growly black variety not too dissimilar to 1349’s Ravn and Legion but way better. They are right where they need to be in the mix.

Birth of Tragedy is a perfect song to conclude the album. It has a soaring epic spice and doesn’t meander one bit which a lot of other bands fall prey to in final tracks in death and thrash. Phoenix Rising has the appreciable length going for it also. A lot of albums are prone to lose some luster by overstaying the welcome with one or two songs that might dilute the overall breadth of the album. Not this time. This record is about 45 minutes of death metal done right. No more, no less. That’s how I like it. This album also gets much praise by me for being so damn awesome in a year where metal overall wasn’t doing too hot. For a little while there, I was lurching along in a vast desert thirsty for good death/thrash. Quite a tall glass of kick ass to wash down the yearning I found. Now I am fit for duty and ready to fall into formation. For all those who recommend Vader instead, drop down and gimme 666!

Australia...thank you. Somehow you have produced one of the greatest bands to ever exist. This is a hard review to write because my head keeps falling off since I must listen to an album as I review it. Very, very distracting!

RIFFS! Lots of bestial riffing reminiscent of thrashy death metal and melodic black metal. The wah-inflected lead guitar tone is enough to make any guitarist throw down his instrument in frustration. There are also quite a few leads and solos. I'd like to think that somewhere out there Kerry King is bending over in tears with THIS on his stereo.

I jest, but soak up those visuals. Really, he's not quite as precise as Marty Friedman or the like. The leads could be a bit more up front at times, slightly lengthier, and maybe more numerous. Very melodic and his playing has a certain raw passion that is lacking with a lot of the more clinical, accurate guitarists. I'm not saying he's sloppy by any means, but you can tell that (at the time) he was probably using most of his ability. Perhaps it's just that I heard the following album before this one where he rips out some amazingly powerful lead work. Certainly nothing major, I'm just pointing all this out.

Back to the riffs. That's what makes this album. Maybe not as many as Dark Angel's Darkness Descends or Torture Squad's Pandemonium but there is still a large amount. Tons of galloping tremolo picking in the lower to middle registers. There's also catchy power chord progressions that will get you throwing the horns. I don't care what else you like, at least ONE of these riffs will make your fucking day.

The songwriting is masterful, too. This band isn't filled up with pretentious motivations trying to adhere to dated stylistic aesthetics. They just come at you with a bazillion banging riffs and infectious vocal hooks over and over again. Every song is incredibly anthemic and memorable. The structures themselves are mostly unconventional. They let the songs breathe properly, make tasteful use of repetition, and use well crafted buildup to lead into the intense, heavy parts. You'll always be anticipating the return of that one killer riff while three more come kick your ass and make you wonder which is better. Of course, this is in more rational moments when you aren't confounded by the sheer awesomeness of it all or unconscious from too much headbanging.

The drummer pulls out some diverse patterns. It doesn't overshadow the stellar riffing but it's still great. I always enjoy the abundant use of cymbals since it's about the only thing that significantly adds to the top end of the sonic spectrum, especially in extreme metal. He manages to mix in cymbal hits into nearly ever beat. Still predominately double bass though. Just the right amount of tom fills which sound pleasantly beefy.

The vocal performance is highly unique and falls more on the black metal side of the equation. They are Warslut. I suppose I could call them "sinister" and "growling" but really...they are 100% Warslut. His lyrics are just as good, too. And when they are this good I must quote them in my review.

"I think I'm a wolf!
Then again,
I'm fuckin' cray-zeh!"

"I think what I need is a bitch,
Don't you?!"

Hell yeah, brother. I think you deserve one. *clap, clap* Come here, bitches...have sex with KK Warslut.

"..." -- That's exactly what came out of my mouth... I was speechless. This album is a milestone in the development of blackened thrash metal. This is my first Destroyer 666 album. What I was expecting, was a typical black metal band. Mono-rhythmic drumming under piercing vocals; what I found, was pleasantly surprising.

This band is as melodic as it is heavy -- and it's fucking heavy. However, I would never dare to go as far as to label this band, "melodic death metal". The heaviness is the type of heaviness you would want in music, if you wanted to bash your head through 80 pounds of reinforced steel... and succeed. This is the type of music that instills emotion, and unfortunately (I assume), not positive emotion.

'I Am the Wargod" is probably the embodiment of this entire album. This behemoth of skull-crushing, metallic-riffage offers an intense blend of thrash and black metal roots.

The heaviness of this album is almost unbearable. It's apparent in the vocals, the guitars, and the drums. The solos are interesting. While they're a bit sloppy, they go perfectly with the underlying music.

There is really nothing negative to say about this album... yet, there isn't much to say about it rather than the fact that it is fucking epically heavy. This is the album to kill people to. This is the album to kick the shit out of people to. This is the album to bang your head to. This is an essential black/death/thrash metal album.