I, Monarch

What a BRUTAL release, probably one of the best Hate Eternal releases I've heard though I like their latest it's pretty good too. But I think the music is better on here. I disagree with critics saying it's "typical Hate Eternal." That to me is undermining this excellent release. The songs are tight and intense! I was hoping for a good release since I'm not a big fan of their latest Infernus. This one has a lot more balls and grit that's what I'm hearing listening to this album. Eric did a good job at riff-writing for this one! Not a lot of lead guitar work just riffs that baffle the listener! Total kick ass songs!

This album was actually recommended to me from an old friend. Spot on, what an album! It's intense the whole way through! Good fresh riffs flowing fantastically! I don't have any ill things to say about this release. I liked it the whole way through! Eric's vocals are pretty low they fit the music wholeheartedly! I love the rhythms and the sound of the album. It captures the listener totally! The back-up vocals are good and appropriate, they give a little variety to the album. I think the highlights are the riffs, the production quality, and the mixing. They did a good job getting this sounding great!

I have trouble listening to a lot of death metal for a while, it's not my favorite genre. I've had to take breaks in listening to this, but all 42 minutes of it is worth it! I thought it was sounding interesting. The title track is pretty killer and well pretty much all of them have great riffs to them! If you like brutal death metal, you'll like this. It's extreme, intense and original! "The Plague of Humanity" is a good track to check out as well, but all of them are streaming. So that's not a problem! If you aren't convinced and you think this is a waste of an album, that's on you not Hate Eternal. They bring forward their masterpiece to you!

I liked this album through and through. I don't have any beef with it. It's got balls and the music is top quality! I'd have to say out of all the Hate Eternal albums I've heard, this one is tops with me! Just listen to it on Spotify or YouTube. You'll hear what I'm talking about if you're open minded. Don't listen to the critics because they're off on this. Show support for the band and get a physical copy of this album! I liked it so much that I bought it! Do it if you're still buying CD's not just streaming music. Hopefully, you'll come to terms that this is a gem of release and there's none from them like it!

Following the line of "King Of All Kings", one could speculate that "I, Monarch" would be another important step in the dethronement of the Angels in the new millennium by Hate Eternal. However, it did not happen so well, although it must be admitted that the Americans still managed to maintain the high level of this cd. After a small reshuffle (which is, as you know, a fairly standard point for Hate Eternal), Rutan, Roddy and Piro (the latter replaced Jared Anderson here) decided not to deviate from the previous formula, used a large resource of earlier patents and - simply put - recorded continuation of the two previous albums.

So it's brutal and fast - the style to which "King..." has already got used to. So I don't see any great reason to describe the music on "I, Monarch" any more. For a large part of this album, three Americans simply smash their intense death metal in the name of Satan and other cool friends from this trend, as long as they crush out seasonal listeners as much as possible and if the blasts prevail. Here, in particular, I can recommend "Path To The Eternal Gods", "Two Demons" or "The Plague Of Humanity", and for a moment of respite (yes, there is also a place for it!) "Sons Of Darkness" or "It Is Our Will" - as if there are those who think Hate Eternal is one and the same. The only thing that could be considered a disadvantage of "I, Monarch" (or rather something on the verge of advantages and disadvantages) concerns the intensity, and more precisely its use. Well, after the previous albums, you get the feeling that Erik Rutan (with the rest of the band) had a better feeling about it. It's not bad or boring here, of course, although in many respects this disc repeats the intensity of the previous ones...but too clearly! And that can evoke a certain sense of déjà vu.

The recommendation of "I, Monarch" is therefore trivial. This release is intended for a strictly defined group that enjoys intense death metal and morbidish playing without any freaks - the rest of those waiting for a breakthrough will be eliminated at the level of half of the album audition. Apparently it's not much after such musicians, and as for the fact that this is their third album, this number of differences leaves a solid dissatisfaction or introduces a certain routine to the band, but...in such an edition as on "I, Monarch" it's still very acceptable!

Originally on: https://subiektywnymetal.blogspot.com/2020/09/hate-eternal-i-monarch-2005.html

Hate Eternal don't exactly play music that could be described as welcoming. This sounds like what be going on at the center of the Earth, at its molten lava core. The music flows like hot magma, reaching temperatures of at least ten times hotter than the hottest setting on your oven. Like yeah, that hot. It's an instance of "try this at your own risk" as the environment is as instantaneously hostile as the hellish pit of a volcano. It compromises for nothing and straight away plunges the listener into a chaos of atonal madness and percussive annihilation, the likes of which was quite unique for its time - "refreshing" wouldn't quite be the word, but unique nonetheless.

Not surprisingly given the band's name, the riffing is essentially pure hatred in the form of extreme brutal musical expression. The guitar work navigates in an ocean of scorching magma violence, punctuated by drummer Derek Roddy's nauseating pounding of the kit, relentless and precise. The parts come at the listener like some sort of a natural disaster. There's a real distress heard in the dissonant riffs as they're twisted at will and depict an odd writhing motion. Tritone fury leads the ball on massive layered diminished power chords, linked up with obscure octave chords strolling around the tracks in predatory-like fashion and single-note riffage for a bit of definition in this utter discordant mayhem.

A didjeridoo even makes an appearance ('To Know Our Enemies') and there's an odd low-pitched, reverb-laden clean voice at the start and finish on the title-track, like an incantation, all adding an extra component of eerie atmospheric darkness to the whole. The lamenting solos cry in anguish and contribute their own drama on the high spectrum of the frequency range over the bottom-heavy rhythm work. Describing the music here, it dawns on me this could be labeled horror death metal. The vocals are a particularly abrasive type of low death growl; hi-res cookie monster roars; although intelligible considering the style here, and coupled with the higher shrieks form a potent double vocal presence at the front of the mixes.

What this album particularly does well that the two previous and the following ones didn't necessarily, is it managed to craft recognizable entities out of the chaotic clay it set out to work with. This isn't just a large oven dish with muddy amorphic matter poured into it and thrown on the table for the public to try their best and grab some. Most tracks have a recognizable signature to them and more than just one part will stay with the invested listener.

Not every song is a death metal classic as this is a solid 10 track piece with an average of 4min of content per, however the album keeps the momentum going throughout as opposed to merely presenting two or three highlights early and calling it a day. The first tracks include arguably 'the' highlight and brutal death metal hymn 'Behold Judas', the awesome and lugubrious title-track is placed right at the middle at Track 5, and Tracks 6 and 8 (the epic ' Path to the Eternal Gods' and ' It Is Our Will') are among the best and most recognizable, and the album ends on a rare instrumental for this style in the jazzy (dare I say...hip-shaking ?) 'Faceless One'. Alright I'll just spell it out: this track is death metal salsa. Not really, just having a chuckle. Well, it wouldn't be an outrageous notion to imagine Rutan and the band doing a terribly serious ritualistic dance to this in the studio.

Overall this mammoth of an album contains some of the most titanic-sounding headbang-inducing grooves and blast-beat led pounders the genre had to offer, and it's certainly still true today, and the crux of it here is Rutan and friends managed to keep it relatively concise as well as focused and detailed, avoiding merely shitting out a hot steaming pile of undefined waste. Thankfully for their buttholes they kept off the Taco Bell this time around, which may not be said about their later releases that focus more on shape over content.

Annable Courts - http://antichristmagazine.com/review-hate-eternal-i-monarch-earache-records/

Anyone approaching “I, Monarch” who is even remotely aware of Hate Eternal as a band is well-aware that the album contains several of the band’s live staples. And while “I, Monarch” is possessed of some of the best songs in the band’s catalogue (“Sons of Darkness,” the title track, “Behold Judas,” “The Victorious Reign,”) it is also possibly the band’s most frustratingly inconsistent releases. While, yes, the escalation of the instrumentals and increased production quality are endearing throughout, as the album continues on Hate Eternal descends into the worst aspects of the formulaic, sacrificing vicious memorability for staid athleticism. An erratic offering, to be sure – but a rewarding listen overall.

The album starts off on a strong note. The simultaneous ascending and descending slides on “Two Demons” inaugurate a monstrous torrent of blasting fury, pummeling diminished chords and an all-around whirlwind clinic in death metal songwriting. “Behold, Judas” continues the assault, and “The Victorious Reign” tears onward in the same vein with some of the most memorable riff-work in recent death metal history. Absolutely huge diminished chords that reek of ossified royalty convinced of its own magnificence, yet soon to tumble into its own hubris. In short, the first three tracks on this album are a very strong opening, even if “Two Demons,” a relatively straightforward track, pales in comparison to the other two.

While the title track is justly a classic of modern death metal and a lesson in the simultaneous effect of rapid acceleration on the drums with a dragging, mammoth riff – the off-kilter feel of the song is spectacular – the rest of the album’s center loses all the momentum the first half built up. “To Know Our Enemies” is a passable death metal song, but “Path to the Eternal Gods,” “The Plague of Humanity,” and “It Is Our Will” are completely unmemorable filler (the pounding, chaotic ending of “It Is Our Will” excepted). The album does conclude on a strong note, with “Sons of Darkness” being one of the strongest cuts here – an overall quite mid-paced and even atmospheric piece, containing some of Roddy’s most interesting stickwork (finally, we’re beyond simply blasting!). “Faceless One” is simply instrumental jamming which, considering the talents of the musicians, is a treat – and, mercifully, it is not simply showing off. A closer that’s not thematically connected to the rest of “I, Monarch” is any significant way, it is a serviceable, if underwhelming, conclusion.

The issue with this album is almost identical to that on “King of All Kings” – while “I, Monarch” has some standout tracks, and even songs that I would hail as classics of the genre, the album is simply not worth listening to front-to-back. The issue that is even deeper with this album is its eventual descent into monotony – between “I, Monarch” and “Sons of Darkness,” there are three songs that are simply not possessed of any staying power. The other issue with this album is the awkward, unthematic attempts at varied soundscapes – the synth/vocoder at the end of “To Know Our Enemies” has nothing to do with the almost tribal atmospherics in “Sons of Darkness,” or the suitably massive groaning vocal at the beginning of “I, Monarch.” This does not help the cohesiveness of the album, which already suffers from some unmemorable material.

While the instrumental performances are spectacular, Rutan’s vocals are absolutely massive on this record, and whether it was better recording quality or good old-fashioned work ethic, this aspect of “I, Monarch” is certainly a standout. All in all, this is an incredibly uneven album that has some of modern death metal’s best compositions, some perfectly mediocre tracks, and – unfortunately – three track’s worth of absolutely forgettable material. The album as a whole is sustained by incredible instrumentals and Rutan’s roaring vocal, but I will not soon be throwing on the album for its entirety. While some of these songs certainly deserves abject praise, as a whole it cannot be said to be a part of the death metal royal family’s bloodline.


68%

Whereas “Conquering the Throne” was a serviceable debut of a couple of noted underground musicians, it was “King Of All Kings” that truly elevated Hate Eternal to the upper echelons of the death metal genre, domestic and abroad. The constellation of Erik Rutan (vocals, lead/rhythm guitar), Jared Anderson (bass guitar, vocals) and Derek Roddy (drums) had delivered their breakout record, and now more than ever all eyes were set upon them to deliver on the promise of that second record. Somewhere during the touring campaign Anderson defected to deal with his substance addiction, and a temporary replacement was drafted in one Randy Piro. Once again holing up in Mana Recordings in genre hotbed Florida the trio wrote and recorded “I, Monarch”, the band’s third and most conceptually complete record up to that point.

The third Hate Eternal album marks the end of an era for the band. It was the last record for long-time contractor Earache Records, the last to feature notorious drum mercenary (and budding solo artist/clinician) Derek Roddy and the sole record to feature bass guitarist/vocalist Randy Piro. It is the first record to feature artwork by Paul Romano, and the last of three records to feature royal connotations in its choice for album title. Functioning as the transitional record in between the two eras of the band, it is a punishingly brutal, and inhumanly fast but surprisingly diverse and groovy exploration of the sound Hate Eternal had perfected on the preceding two albums. The ornamental enhancements accentuate the band’s strengths and put more emphasis on the more developed songstructures. This can especially be heard in the instrumental track ‘Faceless One’, which is sadly the only such thing Hate Eternal has done to date. This more adventurous spirit is what makes this record so much more engaging than the competent but rather faceless two albums that came before. The right level of experimentation, and instrumentation make this record slightly different from the pure exercises of inhuman speed and technical expertise. The same can be said about “I, Monarch”, but it is wrapped in an atmospheric package from which it benefits.

Notable is that “I, Monarch” goes for a meatier, fuller production that recalls the band’s debut, but is far richer in terms of tone, depth and texture. Produced once again at Mana Recordings in St. Petersburg, Florida by Erik Rutan and Derek Roddy, it is here that the latter displays his own signature writing style, and has a crunchy production to match. For the first (and only) time the drums sound truly massive and commanding all while displaying the intricacies, precision and force with which they are played. It is unfortunate that it would be the swansong for drummer Derek Roddy. As always the bass guitar is buried underneath the thick sounding guitars, and drums. It is hard to judge exactly what Randy Piro contributes to these songs instrumentally, but at least vocally he is able to match himself with his much loved predecessor Jared Anderson. The riffs are much more interesting and engaging compared to the preceding two records, and they are of more significance within the better developed songstructures. The key strength of “I, Monarch” is that it isn’t afraid to slow down every once in a while, and put the tireless blasting of Roddy in service of the song – and not the other way around. Without a doubt it is Hate Eternal’s most diverse and accomplished recording.

It is by all accounts the most diverse and best-produced Hate Eternal record due to the use of atmospheric segues and better paced songwriting. An organic, crunchy production and each musician being at the top of their game in terms of writing and performance help immensely too. In essence “I, Monarch” is more closely related to “Conquering the Throne” in terms of construction than it is to its predecessor. What sets it apart from its predecessors is the usage of sampled segues taken from the track ‘Death Posture’ off the “The Secret Eye Of Laylah” recordings by Michael “Zos” Dewitt and Zero Kama, plus the didjeridoo that is heard in ‘To Know Our Enemies’. All of this is mostly superficial as beyond the more balanced and warmer production Hate Eternal has changed precious little in between this and the albums that came before. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing because too many bands seem to change with every record. On its first three records Hate Eternal perfected its traditional death metal sound in every possible way, and “I, Monarch” is the most representative of those changes. It is the record where the band finally showed what they were capable of as songwriters. “Conquering the Throne” and “King Of All Kings” (the former more than the latter) seemed to focus on speed and brutality almost exclusively. That is finally changed wth this third record, and the band is so much more powerful and, well, better for it.

If one was to approach the record without its atmospheric enhancements and instrumentation, what one is left with is an expertly produced but bog standard modern day death metal album. Thankfully Rutan’s former experience in Morbid Angel (and formative death metal act Ripping Corpse before that) has left him with a keen understanding of the genre’s dynamics and strengths. Where any lesser bands would fail Hate Eternal understands the importance of nuance and diversity. Nobody is going to argue that this band has a very specific, tunnel vision of what the genre should be – yet for with this third album (and the two that preceded it) they wrote poignant material within the perimeters they had set for themselves. The nuances primarily are found in the use of melody, a newfound diversity in its percussive assault and Rutan’s always sparkling Eastern sounding leads/solos. On top of all these marked improvements Rutan’s vocals are a lot better produced this time around clearly proving his ability as a frontman. In comparison to a lot of his contemporary peers his growls are well enunciated and never stray into unintelligible territory despite their impressive throaty depth.

Two videos were shot to promote the record. The videos for ‘I, Monarch’ and ‘The Victorious Reign’ were directed and produced by Shane Drake for Red Van Pictures. Of the two ‘I, Monarch’ is the most interesting as it combines the usual performance footage with a narrative of a sorcerer’s apprentice building a contraption out of human remains. The video for ‘The Victorious Reign’ is a typical performance video set in a warehouse. It is only memorable for the very brief spot where second live guitarist Eric Hersemann can be seen. Hersemann appeared prior on the Diabolic record “Infinity Through Purification” (which featured a similar but lesser interpretation of this record’s sound), and later would form psychedelic death metal act Gigan with fellow former Hate Eternal bass guitarist Randy Piro. On the successor to this record the band would enlist a new drummer, recruit a famous session bass guitarist and adopt a more bouncy sound. The classic era ends with this last installment of a three-album stint. One can only wonder what this record would have sounded like had Anderson co-written in the sessions.

Review originally written for Least Worst Option - www.leastworstoption.com

Hate Eternal managed to impress me with their thunderous debut, "Conquering the Throne". However, now, I find them quite generic and boring. And there's a good reason why: they're relying too much on their drummer!!! In this case, the only guy who made a big impact on this album was Derek Roddy.

I, Monarch actually starts out very well. Two Demons had this album coming out of the gates fast and furious! They managed to keep it up with the blazing "Behold Judas", which I consider the best song on the album. Great drumming, catchy lyrics, great vocals, and I even found the main riff quite memorable. "The Victorious Reign" is another blazer with many of the same elements as Behold Judas. To Know Our Enemies continues the fury, and then comes the atmospheric intro of "I, Monarch". At first, I thought "Oh boy, with such a great build-up, this song has to be great!"... only to be hit with massive disappointment. The rest of the song is just the same riff and blast beats over and over again. At this point, they fail to continue on their previous momentum, with only "Sons of Darkness" and the instrumental "Faceless One" keeping the second half of the album any more interesting.

I was shocked. How could such an awesome formula fail to keep me engaged in this album any further? The answer was simple: Derek Roddy overshadows everything. I'm a sucker for fast drummers, but sometimes, the constant blast beats and double kicks get quite boring and generic. Same for the guitar riffs: at some points in the album, they are quite memorable, but they are mostly just boring and generic.

Overall, I thought that this album had a blazing start, but the title track broke their previous momentum, and they just started playing boring and generic riffs the rest of the way. But the entire way, even on memorable songs like "Behold Judas", Derek Roddy's drumming just overshadowed everything.

Highlights: Behold Judas, The Victorious Reign

Not sure what the obsession with 'royalty' is among Hate Eternal's album titles (Conquering the Throne, King of All Kings, and now this), but it probably has something to do with the pseudo-Satanic menace and majesty Rutan is attempting to exude through the lyrics and music. A new John Milton, born of a ripping corpse? This time the concept is joined to a rather abstract cover. Clearly not as cool as those of the first two albums, but at least an interesting aesthetic abstraction from what most people were likely expecting. Musically, I, Monarch does not fall far from the sophomore King of All Kings, intense and discordant where it requires, dynamic and forceful, but perhaps not quite so heavy overall.

At this point, the issue with Hate Eternal is that the band's adherence to becoming the newly defined Morbid Angel of the 21st century is like a tsunami without an unsuspecting port to destroy. Rutan and Derrick Roddy whip up a veritable storm of calamity here, with incessant blasting and so much double bass that it becomes a rather moot point: such a brick wall that it hinges on the listener's exhaustion. Thus, in diametric opposition, I find my ears listening for anything that diverges from this formulaic ferocity. I turn straight towards the lead sequences of "To Know Our Enemies" or "Behold Judas", which weave appropriate malevolence into the aggregate jock escalation of the drums. I bathe in the wonderful escape of instrumental finale "Faceless One", in which the duo and bassist Randy Piro exhibit enormous skill at something more musical than you will find elsewhere on this album: a whirlpool of delirious percussion and coiling riffs that cede into scatterbrained fusion leads and thrashing.

But this is not to say that the thrusted excess is necessarily unwelcome, because tunes like "Path to the Eternal Gods" or "The Plague of Humanity" are well adapted to their chosen trail of destruction. Brutal bricks of contaminated concrete, urine, feces and flies being flung at the audience in dizzying waves, each with a stupefying muscular definition. I, Monarch takes a lot out of you, and the fact that the production is a dash more wholesome and contemporary than the more stringy ablutions of King of All Kings is not a crippling factor. However, it does suffer from that pervasive 'more of the same' syndrome that so often lurks in the rafters of the more extreme death metal reaches. Rutan and Roddy seem so intent on flattening all the opposition that they don't quite realize what great songs they might be capable of if they were to slow it down a notch and evoke the surreal menace that the cover image seems to hint towards. This is still a good album, but less impressive than the first two trips to the edge.

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com

Because I sure as hell can't. I can't even listen to the first song, because it just drags and avoids everything that can make a straight-forward death metal song good or memorable (great riffs, furious grunts, and slam grooves).

Instead we are treated with the awful 'Two Demons', so we skip to the almost pretty good 'Behold Judas'. Now, this song has a chorus that makes Mr. Rutan sound confused, as the lead line of the chorus repeats at the wrong times and makes it sound like he can't keep time vocally. Anyways, the instrumentals sound like a Morbid Angel clone, but down a step in creativity and actual good writing.

That's another thing, it seems that while he was in Morbid Angel, Rutan stole some ideas from fellow guitarist Trey or that he just infused those ideas with riffs stolen from another band he was in, Ripping Corpse.

One thing I can't fault the man on are his vocals, they are superb. Ranging from a hoarse yell/grunt to a primal scream, he fills out a decently wide spectrum, or just wide enough to keep most fans interested.

The drumming is your usual blastfest, which is dissapointing, and furthermore the fills and style kind of bore me. It's the same reason why Inferno from Behemoth isn't as good as claimed, the drums just plod along (at a rather quick pace) and are content with doing the same thing...for 42 fucking minutes.

The bass is almost absent, save for a few moments when the vocals and drumming don't overpower everything else. What I heard from the bass was pretty standard, so whatever. Speaking of all that, the production is pretty good. Very modern sounding, but still has that wall of sound feel without actually being a wall of sound.

The songwriting is atrocious, howwever. Rutan can't keep up with where death metal is going, I think, and it really shows here. Maybe he is trying to do straight-up death metal...but then why are there atmospheric-attempts and long-drawn out riffs that need to evolve somewhere? I don't know, maybe he's trying to compromise between modern, technical stylings and the old-school fury.

The guitars are pretty cool on this album, however. A little too much "there", if you know what I mean, and they just seem to be there to be there, not making any impact, or creating any musical force that makes me impressed. The guitar tone is sufficient for a modern band, thick and grinding, and definitely with cut mids. The guitar-playing itself is infinitely sub-standard, and the riffs are mediocre by themselves. The solos are pure drivel, going nowhere, like a bad John Petrucci or something.

This album is really quite bad, but it gets quite a few points for a good song or two, good vocals, good guitar tone, a cool title track, and that's it. It gets such a low score because of EVERYTHING else.

I wouldn't recommend this to anyone who is into good death metal.

Supposedly this sounds just like Morbid Angel, which is very untrue in the sense that no two bands sound quite alike, but very true to the extent that a lot of death metal bands sound like Morbid Angel. Hate Eternal guitarist and general frontman and guy-in-charge Eric Rutan has been in and out of that band now and again as “the other guitar player” and so there's another strike against them. I'd never mistake one band for the other, though.

What this album really sounds like is the first two Hate Eternal albums (this is number three), not surprisingly. I thought they were both pretty good, but this one's a whole lot better.

For starters, Eric Rutan's broadened out to using an impassioned gothic vocal style, with some occasional falsetto parts, which works surprisingly well. Combine that with the jazz-influenced drumming and the occasional violin solo and it's clear we're dealing with one of those rare bands that's open-minded enough the move the death metal genre forward.

Of course I'm kidding. There's one small concession to originality (in the usual sense) in the form of some brief tribal drumming (there must be a more accurate way to describe it than that, but bear with me) but I don't think it's convincing anyone, and I could live with it being omitted altogether.

What does this album have going for it, given the fact that it so sorely lacks violin solos? Why bother with it, when there are already two other Hate Eternal albums in precisely the same style? Well, would you believe that the music's better? Consider it as a more perfected version of the rough drafts heard on the first two Hate Eternal albums. Thankfully the predictability that hindered King of all Kings has been jettisoned in favor of more intricate (though understandable) structuring. More superficially, the production is much clearer, while retaining the same power.

Eric Rutan has no other goal with Hate Eternal than to play straight-up death metal, so if you have other goals as a listener, it would be wise to steer clear. He's a master of his craft, though, on the level of riffing and songwriting in the style. What he's doing may not impress you, but how he's doing it should – don't be so jaded as to dismiss it out-of-hand because it doesn't “move the genre forward.”

Tickticktickticktickticktickticktickticktick go the strings of my heart. Well, not really those; more the poor, abused head on Derek Roddy's snare drum. This album has more tick-tick-ticking than your average Kataklysm record, which is definitely saying something these days, as I thought that band pretty much had the monopoly on savage snare rape when it comes to the pantheon of death metal. But with a new Hate Eternal record, the three-piece always finds a way to up the ante on how much monotonous blasting you can fit onto one CD. Which I guess is commendable in some peoples' eyes.

For all the Hate Eternal that I've heard, they actually did have some vaguely interesting moments on their debut album 'Conquering The Throne'. I think there was about five minutes on that record that was not drenched in blast beats. 'King Of All Kings', however, most certainly set the bands pattern in motion. However, even that record was pretty tolerable on songs like the title track, which was short enough to maintain your attention despite how repetitive it was. But no, on 'I, Monarch', Hate Eternal doesn't even have the remote decency to at least keep the songs to a bearable length. The songs here are terrible, terrible epics at about five minutes long each, and what do you think those five minutes each are reserved for? Yes! Blast beats and mindless, random tremolo riffing!

I'm not saying that the band has to change up the tempo to be good. I'm not even saying that they necessarily have to use anything other than blast beats to be good. I'm saying that a death metal band at the very least needs to make their monotonous blasting vaguely interesting with at least some memorable riffs to hold everything together. Erik Rutan doesn't even manage that: there are no 'riffs', just guitars doing vague things over and over again to add another layer of noise to the proceedings. Are the vocals interesting? Hell no! An utterly trite and boring grrrr is all that you get (except for the first 45 seconds on 'Two Demons', which feature one cool low growl, and the vocal interplay makes this probably the best section of music on this boring-ass record). And of course, what would Hate Eternal be without Derek Roddy's idiotic, self-indulgent drum performance where he tick-tick-ticks away on his snare drum at a speed which is supposed to be 'impressive'.

Allow me to take the time to express just how massive my distaste for Derek Roddy is. I have no idea whatsoever how this man became some sort of champion of metal drumming that everyone refers to with doe-eyed adoration. Yes, he's fast. Yes, such speed requires coordination. But how can everyone be so willing to drive drumming, nay, skill with a musical instrument down to a dick-waving contest with the finish line being an enormous stamp of 'BPM = 300'? Okay, so he can muster up some spectre of technicality once in a blue moon. Too bad he's used his talents probably twice in the history of Hate Eternal. And yet, despite how loathsome his ticking is, he is (or was) the jewel in Hate Eternal's enormous crown of incompetence. After his departure, I routinely stated that Hate Eternal should just use a drum machine; after all, no one would notice the difference in mechanical blasting.

Roddy's complete lack of variation in Hate Eternal music is even more unbearably hilarious because of his previous statements on the nature of drumming. A video response to his fans, among other things, mentioned that back in the 80's metal drumming was only 'five to ten percent blast beats'. What, Derek, do you need to make up for lost time!? Was everything in metal designed to build up to that immortal coda that is The Blast Beat? I know he can't possibly think that; his other bands express a great deal more variation. On a final note, let's all have a moment of silence for his failed audition for Psyopus, proving that he most certainly lacks something in his equation. So I suppose that not everything can be blamed on Roddy; it's just a very big, very convenient target for why Hate Eternal sucks to terribly, with 'I, Monarch' easily being the very worst they have to offer. No, just as much blame rests on Erik Rutan (let's ignore whatever bassist of the week they have, as they possess essentially no creative input). He, of course, makes riffs with a similar lack of variation or anything remotely interesting, instead leaning on an endless supply od droning tremolo to uphold some pretense of 'brutality'. Guess what: brutality comes from songwriting, not how many notes you can pack into one space.

Hate Eternal is a classic example of all that is wrong in death metal today. No atmosphere, no creativity, not even any well-done worship. There's nothing of value here whatsoever. Ignore.

Hate Eternal lets loose the unlimited power of brutality here on their third release, which is a commendable daeth metal outing. Displaying a ferocious, methodological prowess on tracks like the hyperblasting, crippling “Behold Judas” and the slashing dervish leadoff cut, “Two Demons,” Hate Eternal gives listeners plenty of wallop for their dollar.

Erik Rutan offers a blackened sonic war soundtrack in “The Victorious Reign”, a track that explores the boundaries of extremity, as this basher is delivered at a unmerciful pace while remaining decidedly infectious and memorable. The title cut fades in mysteriously, with a uncharacteristic tapping introduction which segues into a lurching blast.

Randy Piro and Derek Roddy each turn in tremendous performances from a technical standpoint, taking blasting to a new level on “To Know Our Enemies”, one of the record’s definite highlights. One of the primary reasons Hate Eternal reign so effectively here is Rutan’s acute dynamic emphasis. He often places sounds into the foray that are highly different for this type of music, his production work almost surpassing his massive performance.

Certainly, this is an album that will be considered to be a benchmark in extreme music by many, with Hate Eternal continuing to advance toward becoming a breed unto themselves. “Path Of The Eternal Gods” finds the group to bring a wall of blustering power that could easily be considered as the most excessive form of sonic thunder ever to burst through a speaker.

“I, Monarch” is a considerable victory for Hate Eternal overall, containing everything you would expect from the group as well as some aspects the astute devotee of death will find to be pleasantly surprising.

I found this CD used and figured it was worth a shot. I'm a big Morbid Angel fan, and I figured Erik Rutan could do no wrong, and I feel with this one I was right. This CD is absolutely nuts.

I was a little worried about what the production might be like when I read that Rutan had produced it. I have the Dim Mak "Intercepting Fist" album, which is excellent, but it sounds more like it was recorded by hobbyists. That is not a problem here, as this album sounds absolutely excellent. However, if you have a cheap boombox, turn off the bass boost or you'll think that Derek Roddy is the only performer on this album.

I can understand the "I've heard this before" argument, but if you've heard it before you can't say you could hear it much better than here. The riffing is only vaguely Morbid Angel-esque, and it's pretty easy to tell that this isn't Morbid Angel (not a knock on that band by any means). Erik Rutan is in his own element here, and this is a devastating album.

I don't find there to be much in the way of monotony here, as the performances on this album are excellent. The songs have their own identity, and you can find favorites on here within a few listens. I would reccomend this album to any death metal enthusiast on any day of the week.

There's no filler here, but if I had to pick a few songs on the album as being the best, votes would have to go to The Victorious Reign, The Plague of Humanity and Faceless One, the latter of which Roddy really shines. This album made me a Hate Eternal fan for life.

Well, it’s been three long years since our last encounter with Hate Eternal. And within such a grotesquely large portion of time, one would be led to believe that the particular band would have used that time to its advantage. The truth being, they did and they didn’t. While I will contend that I, Monarch is much better than their previous efforts, I will also proclaim that they didn’t do nearly enough for me to consider this new album worth my wait. Not that I was anticipating this album. Nevertheless, they remain predictable, bland Death Metal. Not that I mind, being a fan of the genre I can say that I, Monarch was definitely entertaining, but only on the first one or two listens. Beyond that, it began to bore me. And then I started listening to Cryptopsy…

First and foremost, I would like to address what differentiates Hate Eternal’s new work from their old. Occasionally throughout the album, for some reason, they decided to slip in a few synthetic sound samples here and there. Just atmospheric keyboards, nothing too over the top, and definitely nothing dislikable, but not nearly important enough to mislead me into believing that Hate Eternal have turned over a new leaf. Furthermore, the production on this album was crystal clear. That was a major help. Unfortunately, that is all that has really changed. And far too much about them has stayed the same for I, Monarch to be noted as a worthy attempt.

Same as always, their Drummer sounds like he took just a little too much speed before the recording session. The larger portion of this album was dominated by mid-paced Death Metal riffs, overlapped by unnecessarily rapid Percussion. There were very few moments in I, Monarch for me to catch my breath, which wouldn’t have been so horrible if there were more innovative Drum patterns, but it was mostly just the same, overly fast Double Kick that eventually made the CD feel stale. One positive comment on the Drumming, however, is that once or twice on I, Monarch there was a tribal-like essence that gave the album a more rhythmic aura to it. Yet, those moments on the album were only few and far between.

One thing that I will say about Hate Eternal, before this review is wrapped up, is that had they made the rest of the tracks on the album more like the last one, I, Monarch would have been a triumph. And bare in mind, that the last song (“Faceless One”) isn’t the only highlight on the CD; it’s just the best. In closing, if you are going to buy one of their albums: make it this one. It’s extremely heavy, fast and violent, but I cannot stress how many other Death Metal outfits are out there doing the exact same thing. I give I, Monarch an honest 50%. In my book, that is average. But if you are going to buy this CD; you might as well buy anything by Fleshgrind, Desecration or Disgorge. Same shit, different pile! And I like those bands…

After Hate Eternal`s last release called “King of all kings”, I was almost at the point where I would consider them the best brutal DM band ever, but this release has changed my opinion a bit. I, monarch is not a bad album at all, in fact it is one of the better albums released this year. What I dislike with it is the monotone, the predictability and the annoying fact that you are listening to similar songs over and over again. Hate eternal are perhaps one of the fastest and most brutal bands in the death metal scene right now, but if they don’t manage to compose more original music they will definitely lose a lot of fans. This album has a lot of great moments and several astonishing riffs. Erik Rutan’s vocals are also better than ever, creating a dark and majestic atmosphere in most of the songs. His lyrics (about paganism, anti-Christianity, strength etc) on this record are maybe the best he has ever made, but I miss the entirety given by Jared Anderson’s lyrics on King of all kings.

Due to Jared’s drug problems HE obtained a new bassist named Randy Piro. He seems very good, but the bass is bare audible on the album, so it is hard to judge. He contributes with some vocals and two songs on the album; “Behold Judas and “Sons of darkness”. Randy Piro will probably have a great future in Hate eternal, considering his fast integration in the band.

Now over to the album’s biggest surprise, the supreme drummer, Derek Roddy. I didn’t think it was possible to play any better than Derek did on the two recent albums, but apparently it is. With an amazing discography and insane drum skills, I would not call it an exaggeration to appoint Derek Roddy as a drum god. His drumming is technical, extremely fast and from time to another very groovy. He also gets a chance to play a song without blast beats, an instrumental titled “The faceless one”. On the opening track, “Two demons”, he really kicks several asses with his insane speed and enormous technique.

As you can’t call this album bad (because it isn’t), you can call it disappointing. “Behold Judas”(definitely the best song) was available for download some months before the record came out, and I was honestly expecting the album to be at equal standard to this song, which it unfortunately wasn’t. In my opinion this song is a mixture of all the positive elements on I, monarch; speed, fast vocals, nice leads and a bit groove.

Although I have given a bit critique so far in the review, don’t miscomprehend what I am trying to say. This is in fact a good album. Just listen to songs like “Behold Judas”, “Victorious reign” and “To know our enemies”. The slow part with the nice cymbal work on “It is our will” is also very good (the complete song is nothing to brave about, though). But the album as a whole gets a bit boring and doesn’t have that much to offer compared to other DM releases this year. So a conclusion for Hate eternals newest effort would be that it is a good album with inconceivable speed and marvelous vocals, but a masterpiece? No…

Eric Rutan continues his quest for delivering the most brutal and technical Death Metal possible.

This albums is neither things but it certainly displays that Eric is getting closer to his goal. The production here is a lot better than in their predecessor "King of All Kings" but still lacks the thickness and heaviness of their debut "Conquering the Throne". The drums are far more audible and comprehensible and Derek Roddy punishes relentlessly his drum kit as ever, delivering a stream of blastbeats interleaved by twists and turns without being limited just to that.

The riffs are very good and explore a wider range than the previous albums, though following the same principles. One thing that I highly appreciate is how texture is created and managed by all instruments, delivering layer upon layer of intrincate and rich sound fabric. The solos, as usual, are built primarily upon the modal system, giving the songs a good middle-eastern vibe.

The last track "Faceless One" is something a little bit different. It is an instrumental track and is different from the rest of the album because it lacks the insane blastbeating, allowing the drums to wander around different scopes and grooves.

It is an excellent album. Definately a must have for all fans of Hate Eternal's previous works. I heard the album is coming out in different editions, so I am hoping to put my hands on the fancy one. :-)