Album Review: Hate Eternal-Phoenix Amongst The Ashes

I am going to be completely honest, I lost interest in Hate Eternal for a while. I saw them live two years ago with Hatebreed and they were one of the most disappointing live acts ever. Erik Rutan's vocals were really muddled and it looked like he didn't give two shits about the performance. This was a big factor in why I didn't check out Phoenix Amongst The Ashes right away, but after all the acclaim it had been receiving, I decided to give it a bid. I am really glad I did, Phoenix Amongst The Ashes restored my faith in Hate Eternal and instantly made me a fan again

What really struck about me Phoenix Amongst The Ashes from the start was how fucking heavy it was. "Rebirth" is a perfect intro. This album is essentially the rebirth of Hate Eternal as a death metal force and I could not think of a more perfect opening song title. The fury of the opener carries over to the savage trio of tracks "The Eternal Ruler", "Thorns Of Acacia" and "Haunting Abound". These tracks grab the listener with their extreme heaviness, fret-board melting guitar solos, and melodic tinges. You can tell that Hate Eternal wanted to just massacre the listener from the start and they did just that. The album does take a little bit of dip in quality with "The Art Of Redemption" and the title track. Rest assured, Hate Eternal more than makes up for it with the punishing final tracks (album closer "The Fire Of Resurrection" being the standout of the final bunch of tracks.) This albums ends just as strong as it begins and Rutan saves some of his best solos of the entire record for last.

Hate Eternal has returned to their mighty form with Phoenix Amongst The Ashes. It's a devastatingly heavy effort that provides 40 minutes of crushing death metal. Erik Rutan is still one of the best guitar players in extreme metal, his solos here are among his most impressive to date. I will say that I didn't enjoy Phoenix Amongst The Ashes nearly as much as a lot of people did, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it. Phoenix Amongst The Ashes rekindled my love for Hate Eternal and this is a must-listen for fans of death metal.

4/5 Stars
Standout Tracks
1.Thorns Of Acacia
2.Haunting Abound
3.The Fire Of Resurrection