Album art by Vladislav Kutuzov
Up and coming black metal artists, Empyrean Throne, are gearing up to release their first full length album: ‘Chaosborne’. The album will be released on January 24th, 2017 by Erthe and Axen Records. The record was produced by Mick Kenney (Anaal Nathrakh). The American band was born in Lake Forest, California back in 2011. This will be the band’s followup to their debut EP that was released in 2013, titled ‘Demonseed’. Empyrean Throne does a great job combining the traditional black metal sound along with the new age sound as well. They blend in orchestral elements, melodic and speedy guitar, and raw, ripping vocals. The band consists of Andrew Knudsen on vocals, Mike Brennan on guitar, and Leviathan on the drums. You can check out some of their previous material on their Bandcamp page as well.
Listening to this record, you would think that Empyrean Throne are veterans of the genre. Already having shared the stage with artists such as Nile, Kataklysm, Aborted, and Cattle Decapitation, you can see that they have taken some pointers. The band has already perfected a balanced mix of influences throughout different ages of black metal. You hear bits that take you back to the roots of where the genre started and you also hear things that push the boundaries of where black metal can go. The album tells the story of a Templar knight back in the times of medieval Europe. It tells the tale of his descent into a territory of Chaos. The track, ‘Usurping the Obsidian God’, starts with a wicked growl and takes you into an atmospheric feeling of falling. Then, it kicks into a speed filled song with blast beats and powerful vocals. The song then switches to some magnificent, melodic guitar solos from Brennan that add lots of emotion and feel to the hymn. The orchestra brings the tune to a solemn close. The title track, “Chaosborne”, starts off with an epic rant before tunneling into a blood-curdling scream. In my opinion, this is the best song on the album. They do a great job mixing all of the things I previously talked about while also throwing in some power metal influence as well. In the two part track, “Haereticus Stellarum”, Empyrean Throne demonstrates how great they really are at such an early stage in their career. The epic begins with some calm melodic guitar, and switches between the screams and power metal-like vocals. Songs like these will expand their fan base as it is very diverse and will bring in different listeners. It also shows off how well they use orchestral sequences to create suspense and buildup. You can listen to Part II of the track below or on Bandcamp. Leviathan does a fantastic job creating a dark tone on the album with his fast paced drumming. Mike Brennan is terrific, showing off shredding skills and his fast played riffs throughout the album. Overall, Empyrean Throne has put together one of the stronger debut albums I’ve heard in a long time. There is something in the record for every extreme metal fan and I highly recommend that you check it out. You can check out the track below and pre-order the new album here. Also be sure to follow the band on Facebook and subscribe to them on YouTube.
