Album Review: KREATOR - Gods of Violence

01. Apocalypticon

02. World War Now
03. Satan Is Real
04. Totalitarian Terror
05. Gods Of Violence
06. Army Of Storms
07. Hail To The Hordes
08. Lion With Eagle Wings
09. Fallen Brother
10. Side By Side
11. Death Becomes My Light

Ltd edition Blu-Ray / DVD (Live at Wacken 2014)

01. Mars Mantra
02. Phantom Antichrist
03. From Flood Into Fire
04. Warcurse
05. Endless Pain
06. Pleasure To Kill
07. Hordes Of Chaos
08. Phobia
09. Enemy Of God
10. Civilization Collapse
11. The Patriarch
12. Violent Revolution
13. United In Hate
14. Flag Of Hate / Tormentor

The last eighteen months have seen many Thrash Metal legends releasing absolutely killer albums. The latest albums from  Slayer, Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica, Testament and Sepultura were all beasts and demonstrated that their creative fires are burning as bright as ever. Now it's Kreator's turn.

Every now and then, a band gets their new album absolutely right. Gods of Violence is exactly what I wanted from the new Kreator album and more. The production is crisp and heavy, and is perfect for them in 2017. They sound like a band reborn. Musically they have created something that sounds fresh and creative yet doesn't veer from the path of their trademark sound.

After the climax of the intro Apocalypticon, the album tears of with the brutal and politically relevant World War Now which really sets the tone for Gods of Violence. This is followed by my three favourite songs off the album in succession; the melodic Satan Is Real which is Kreator at their theatrical best, Totalitarian Terror which is not only a Thrash masterpiece, but has lyrics that are made even more powerful due to current affairs in world politics around the time of the album's release, and title track Gods of Violence which, with its beautifully crafted acoustic intro, leads into a full on Metal assault of the senses spliced with regal sounding catchy lead guitar parts. The rest of the album is also really strong, with not a filler in sight. This is state of the art thrash metal at its finest.

I remember reading an interview with lead vocalist/guitarist Mille Petrozza a while ago where he said that they really pushed themselves to make this album exciting and something special. All their efforts have clearly paid off as this album really is something very special indeed.

Is Gods of Violence the best Kreator album so far? I believe it may well be. There's always a danger for older bands, especially those with historical significance, that they may live in the shadow of former glories. Kreator shouldn't have this worry. They are not only relevant, but are on top of their game. This ace card of an album is sure to grow their fan base and create a new generation of Kreator fans.

It's also worth mentioning that the limited edition version includes a Blu Ray or DVD of their entire set from Wacken 2014 festival. I picked up the Blu Ray version and it's superb. The sound is great and it's all professionally filmed. Definitely worth picking up!