Blood Label

Existence Expires

Written by: AP on 20/02/2012 15:16:33

Blood Label is a Danish thrash/death metal band in close alignment with the other prominent homegrown practitioners of the genre: The Burning, Hatesphere and The Kandidate. Their debut album "Existence Expires" was released last year, but as it was sent to us only a few weeks ago, we have deemed it suitable for a retrospective review, especially as promoting Danish music is a significant part of what we do. So what of the album?

As soon as the eponymous intro track fades into "Traitors Beware", it becomes succinctly clear that Blood Label are not out to break boundaries or set new standards for the genre. The song is a carbon replica of Hatesphere circa "The Sickness Within", with a thick central groove pushing the song onward amidst alternating screams and growls, occasional melodies and a mosh-friendly rhythm section. Not exactly reinveting the book, but the approach is solid and more than sufficient to satisfy any metal head's daily headbanging quota.

Given that Jacob Bredahl - formerly the vocalist of Hatesphere, now of The Kandidate - is credited as the production engineer, it is no surprise that "Existence Expires" enjoys a fantastic mix in which the heavier elements of Blood Label's sound are afforded extra prominence, giving rise to a morbid, hellish atmosphere characteristic of death metal. Add the velocity of thrash, and the likes of "Mutiny", "Into Perpetual Fire" and the brilliant "This is Not a Peace Offering" become irresistibly brutal, balls-to-the-walls metal bangers that no fan of Lamb of God, Gojira or indeed the aforementioned three Danish bands can dismiss.

The surprising thing is that although Blood Label lack the experience of their domestic peers, they're able to produce songs that are just as good, surpassing even the debut offering of The Kandidate. So although there is essentially nothing new or innovative going on in songs like "The Deprivation of the Human Race" and "Evil Incarnate", the sheer malevolence of the beast ensures Blood Label will not be swept aside as just another Danish metal band with nothing to contribute to the country's increasingly ambitious musical palette. If you liked Hatesphere best with Jacob Bredahl at the helm, then Blood Label is likely to go into regular rotation on your stereo as well.

Download: Traitors Beware, Mutiny, This is Not a Peace Offering, The Deprivation of the Human Race, Evil Incarnate
For the fans of: Hatesphere, The Kandidate, Lamb of God
Listen: Facebook

Release date 12.08.2011
Gateway Music

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