Review: Hazeroth – Arsenal
From the Vault Review: Hazeroth – Arsenal
Arsenal, the debut album from Brazil’s unblack metal horde Hazeroth, is not your typical debut album. Released in March of 2011 on the now-defunct label Unblack Metal Scene Records, it was not so much a debut as it was a patched-together Frankenstein’s monster of material from two demos; namely, Impérios Desolados (2004) and Supremo Poder da Guerra (2008). The tracklist goes in reverse order of the demo’s release dates. But it gets even more complicated.
Like Napalm Death’s Scum, Hazeroth’s debut features two almost totally different line-ups, with only the band’s consistent drummer and main member, Hör Bamoth Abarim (real name Estevan Anderle) as the anchoring member between both sets of tracks. To muddy the waters even more, Hör Bamoth Abarim isn’t the drummer for seven out of the twelve tracks!
Arsenal begins with the material from Supremo Poder da Guerra, before segueing into the tracks from Impérios Desolados. Despite the two different line-ups on here, the approach of early Hazeroth remains fairly consistent on here: raw-throated shrieks and rasps with zero reverb, punchy drums, and sloppy guitar work being squeezed out of what sounds like some amps on their last legs (especially in the case of the 2008 material). Keeping in mind that this is demo material, it’s still pretty rough.
So, is it actually enjoyable? If you’re like me and like your metal raw, then it most certainly is. Even though Hazeroth have evolved over the years and through numerous line-up changes into a much more full-fledged, anthemic sound that verges away somewhat from their corpsepaint-and-spike-laden days of yore, I find the music on Arsenal still to comprise an important document in the history of South American unblack metal. What Hazeroth here lack in technical skill, they often make up for in sheer bravado. The passion is tangible on both sets of recordings here, and even if the execution isn’t always the best, the band force their way through simply via pure aggression and energy.
Of course, there are some noticeable differences worth mentioning between the two sets of material on here. Already, the band had advanced stylistically from their first demo, and you can hear it in the use of the occasional keyboard sprinklings here and there on the 2008 material. I’d be lying if I ever said I was a big fan of keyboards and synths in black metal (though when it’s done right, such as on Emperor’s In the Nightside Eclipse, for example, it works), and these definitely are of the cornier variety, just a little soft-sounding for my liking. That said, it shows Hazeroth’s willingness to expand on their hostile early sound, even if only a little, ending up sounding like very early Dimmu Borgir (imagine them circa-For All Tid if they went completely feral). Vocalist Melquisedek is arguably the stronger of the two on Arsenal, more guttural and demonstrating a weightier growl than Hör Bamoth Abarim’s higher-pitched shrieks.
The second (and larger) portion of the album comes from the Impérios Desolados material, and is paradoxically worse and better production-wise. Guitars are murkier, drums are clattery, and it all sounds very like being at a jam session. Keyboards are nonexistent, allowing the band to simply thrust ahead with pure black metal aggression. Interestingly, Hazeroth even threw in a cover of a Drottnar track that’s probably little known amongst fans of that band’s later, avant-garde material, a very early track entitled “Frykt ikke” from when the band was known as Vitality. It’s a pretty cool indication that these guys knew their own unblack metal scene pretty well; the cover art even has what appears to be Hör Bamoth Abarim sporting an Abdijah shirt! How on earth he managed to find one is beyond me, but that’s about as awesome as it gets in my books.
What’s interesting too is that Hazeroth, like some other South American extreme metal acts like Golgota and Antidemon, have a habit of redoing songs. If you came to the band from later albums like Charms of Sin or Mene Mene Tequel Ufarsim, you’ll notice some familiar song titles on Arsenal – tracks like “A Honra,” “Chama da Batalha em Hazeroth,” and “Supremo Poder da Guerra.” Arsenal presents these tracks in their earliest forms, focusing on raw black ferocity over any death metal or epic metal overtones. Believe me, Arsenal’s version of “A Honra” sounds almost nothing like the arena-friendly black metal of the version heard on Charms of Sin.
While Arsenal is rough, Hazeroth is a band I keep coming back to and enjoying, and this patched-together album’s passion and intensity keep me coming back. Certainly, other bands do this style far better in many respects. But as a document of South American unblack metal’s history, it remains a key piece in my mind for both understanding the scene’s progression, as well as understanding the evolution of the band itself.
Give it a spin HERE.
For Fans Of: Fire Throne (demo material), Elgibbor, Hortor (earlier), Verdelger, Gorgoroth (pre-Destroyer), Poems of Shadows
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