Vallenfyre - Fear Those Who Fear Him

Published June 1 2017

*=Staff's pick	Born To Decay Messiah Degeneration An Apathetic Grave* Nihilist* Amongst The Filth Kill All Your Masters The Merciless Tide* Dead World Breathes Soldier Of Christ Cursed From The Womb Temple Of Rats

Genre	Death Metal	Gregor Mackintosh	Vocals
Tracks	12	Gregor Mackintosh	Guitar
Running time	39 Min.	Hamish Hamilton Glencross	Guitar
Label	Century Media Records	Hamish Hamilton Glencross	Bass
Release	June 2, 2017	Waltteri Väyrynen	Drums
Country	England	-	Keyboard
Producer	Kurt Ballou
Similar bands	Nihilist, Bloodbath, Asphyx

When Greg Mackintosh (Paradise Lost) founded Vallenfyre it was a way to deal with the death of his father. Alas, the first two albums had a dense aura of grief and darkness conjured through Swedish-influenced death metal with strong doom elements. On the third album, 'Fear Those Who Fear Him' the musical core remains the same but there is something different this time around.

Where the debut and sophomore discs were draped in a shroud of sorrow and agony, this one feels less emotional and more outright aggressive. One could speculate that Greg has processed most of the difficult feelings associated with his father's passing which served as the initial inspiration for Vallenfyre. The doom-laden tunes, which were the predominantly emotional ones on the predecessors, are less prominent on this one in favor of shorter up-tempo songs. Some of the latter are rather unforgettable and feels a bit rushed, which takes a toll on the overall quality of 'Fear Those Who Fear Him'.

This is by no means a bad album, as a whole the riffs, hooks, and song structures are rather enjoyable. However, 'Fear Those Who Fear Him' does not compare to the immense quality shown on Vallenfyre's previous efforts. Still, the quality of the songwriting is superior to the majority of old-school death metal bands out there. These boys have been around since the early 90's and know well what they do. Somewhat peculiar, this is the least immediate of the three Vallenfyre albums and might grow to become almost on par with its predecessors.

Those who wish to dig into the achievements of Vallenfyre ought to check the two previous albums before moving on to this one. Those who have followed the band for some time might find themselves slightly disappointed, but time might reward those persistent.

See also review of: Splinters
See also: interview with Greg Mackintosh

Performance	Originality	Production	Vocals	Songwriting
7	5	6	8	6

Summary
6 chalices of 10 - Tengan