Hatriot are back with a new album featuring grim, nefarious lyrics with subjects including the end of the world, conspiracy theories, horror icons, and a new world order. That sentence summarises “From Days Unto Darkness” just right and introduced to us the announcement of the brand new release from Bay Area thrash act Hatriot. Once featuring Exodus mainman Steve “Zetro” Souza and now with his sons both in the band taking over the reigns, the band have really taken things up a few notches to prove that this isn’t just a one time fling.
As to be expected and not necessarily a big surprise if you are already familiar with Hatriot’s work, the new album has Bay Area Thrash written all over it. While previous efforts were given the classic sound first and foremost, here on “From Days Unto Darkness” things are a little more in your face, modernised particularly on the vocals from Zetro’s son Cody and sounding fresh and heavy.
Things start out full pelt, “One Less Hell” is a real banger. It’s lead intro cool and calm eventually leading into a building vicious thrasher. The added growls Cody has imprinted here, heard through out the album too, is one of the newer elements Hatriot have added to really give the band’s sound some extra muscle. But there is a lot of Zetro in his voice too and it’s remarkably similar in such a way at times that you could almost be mistaken for thinking this was Exodus given that trademark thrash sound is all over this thing.
Moving on from any comparisons though, “Daze Into Darkness” switches the tempo down to a more sludgier, darker tone while “Carnival Of Execution” is a real groove stomper with chaotic thrashy moments indespensed at various times. Keeping with those themes, “Organic Remains” takes the foot off the gas for a bit with some cool tempo changes while still kicking you in the guts.
The ferocious thrash stuff though is where the heart lies within Hatriot and there’s plenty more of that in the second half of the album. “World, Flesh & Devil” has a bit of that old vintage Metallica / Exodus sound and following on from that, the horrified “Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed” sees some extra growls thrown in just for good measure.
The album is pretty relentless from here on out as the final tracks close things out and it”s a pretty good indication that the band clearly have taken what was intially started on those first couple of releases with Zetro and made it a bit more slick and aggressive. With that “From Days Unto Darkness” is probably the strongest album yet and it’s going to give the band some serious legs for the future without a doubt.
9/10
TRACKLIST
One Less Hell
Daze Into Darkness
Carnival of Execution
Organic Remains
World, Flesh & Devil
Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed
In the Mind of the Mad
Delete
Ethereal Nightmare
