Register Forgot login?

© 2002-2024
Encyclopaedia Metallum

Privacy Policy

Handful of Hate > Hierarchy 1999 > Reviews
Handful of Hate - Hierarchy 1999

Black Violence - 88%

CHRISTI_NS_ANITY8, March 7th, 2008

Handful Of Hate during their career, changed different styles of black metal. The beginning was in old school/occult black and with this one we can find Dark Funeral influences, while the last albums are more death/black. Anyway this “Hierarchy 1999” shows a non common impact for a black metal band.

The production is in pure Dark Funeral style with fuzz sounds and hyper fast parts. Usually the songs are short so you can really enjoy the essence of this group. No melody at all, obviously…except for the satanic, cold passages in the guitars sounds. “Disparity” is a good example for its essentiality and simplicity that anyway creates a piece of hell.

The blast beats are essential and continue, like a flowing river. The vocals are so screamed that sometimes remind me Sabathan from Enthroned. They are a bit “far” in the sound compared to the instruments but anyway they’re pure evil. “Fleshcrawling Blasphemy” is notable for the good drums intro and the gloom atmosphere.

The only song that breaks the impact a bit is the “Master’s Pleasure” one, that is very epic with girls’ erotic tones of voices and chains sounds. The doom “Submission (The Fine Art Of Sodomy)” is excellent for malignace and makes the atmosphere become occult and ritualistic. The final “The Rise Of Abomination” has again black, fast riffage and blast beats.

All in all a very good album that sometimes lacks in originality, being their influences so evident and capable of being heard but it's a minor thing compared to the huge impact. True black metal.