Label - Season of Mist
Release Date - 22nd March 2024
Words - Chris Fletcher
Bursting onto the scene at the turn of the millennium, Knoxville’s Brodequin - steered by brothers Jamie and Mike Bailey - gifted the world three albums worth of brutality before disappearing into the shadows. Now, twenty years since their last offering, the band are back and are ready to reclaim their seat at the table reserved for those who make the most extreme music imaginable.
Naming your band after a medieval instrument of torture really does set the tone for what you are about to hear, and right from the start it is clear that the band are looking to continue where they left off with Harbinger Of Woe. Beginning with a wall of riffs and blast beats, opening track ‘Diabolic Edict’ shows you that right away, the band have lost nothing in terms of intensity despite their absence.
From here there is very little let up as the band fire through ten tracks of historically themed death metal. The relentless chug of the guitar stands front and centre, all the while being complimented by the classic drum and snare sound that all fans of old-school death metal hold dear. Little flavours added to the mix, such as the monk-like chant on ‘Thereisana’ really help to create the world in which this album wants you to sit.
Blistering along at such a furious pace, it's important for an album like this to have a production job that suits, and in this regard, it does not disappoint. Everything you wish to hear is audible whilst still sounding raw and filthy. All this coupled with a run time of around thirty-two minutes will see you coming back for more time and time again.
Basing their musical and lyrical themes on our medieval past might seem like quite a niche for a band to occupy - Brodequin however have managed to marry the most brutal period in history with the most punishing music they could make. More than this though, the group have sought direct inspiration from a period in history when the harshness of reality coexisted with an explosion of beauty in art, music and architecture. On this point, it is fair to say that the band have succeeded.
8.5/10
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