It’s been a long time between drinks for new Heathen music, 11 years to be exact but 2020 is the year that the Bay Area thrash legends return. Better late than never as they say and while we live through pandemic lockdowns and such, now is a good time to get some new stuff from Heathen and the wait was well worth it.
“Empire Of The Blind” is 12 songs of trademark Heathen if you really want to sum things up in a short sound bite. There may be a little more muscle in the production and the riffs sound a little dirtier but overall this is Heathen at their best. The subtle prog elements remain and the soaring melodies are laid perfectly over the top of thrash beats, pounding drums and stellar vocal lines from David White who continues to be the voice of the band.
After the intro track “This Rotting Sphere” kick things off we jump straight into some good old fashioned thrash metal in “The Blight“, the first single from the album that really has all the elements of Heathen wrapped into one cocoon. Classic metal, big harmonies and that old school Bay Area sound that fans have come to know, things are off to a good start.
The title track follows and is a real melodic foot stomper, showing some versatility that Heathen are also known for. It wraps up quickly by putting the foot to the floor before heading to the grooving “Dead And Gone“, bouncing real nicely before ending with another killer outro. The production here is thick and in your face, how it should sound with all elements crystal clear and giving the songs some real heaviness to it all.
Things continue pretty solid from here on too with track after track of killer songs – “Sun In My Hand” is a real melodic riff fest, “Blood To Be Let” ups the tempo and keeps the momentum going all the way through, “In Black” combines thrashy elements with heavy metal grooves and “Devour” has one of highlights of the album with a huge breakdown that will make a few necks sore.
The veteran thrashers diversify it a little with a few key tracks like “Shrine Of Apathy” that has more of a melodic rock feel to it while the instrumental “A Fine Red Mist” goes for the throat in a more progressive thrashy way, showcasing some of the band’s technical chops. Of course there’s no getting past the vintage thrash stuff and the band do it well on “The Gods Divide” to close things out before the outro song “Monument To Ruin” rounds it out completely.
It’s another winner after the fantastic “The Evolution Of Chaos” so it is such a shame that Heathen aren’t able to produce more records. Let’s hope it’s not another decade before we see more music from these guys.
8/10
TRACKLIST
This Rotting Sphere
The Blight
Empire Of The Blind
Dead And Gone
Sun In My Hand
Blood To Be Let
In Black
Shrine Of Apathy
Devour
A Fine Red Mist
The Gods Divide
Monument To Ruin
PRE-ORDER EMPIRE OF THE BLIND HERE
