Review by Felix on April 2, 2024.

An Artillery-esque riff kicks off Martyr, the third full-length of Luxembourg’s Scarlet Anger. After a hiatus of six years, the quintet from the Grand Duchy returns with seven songs. That’s not an impressive number, but the album clocks in at 35 minutes and therefore everything is fine in terms of quantity. But, as always, the crucial thing is called quality. Their first two albums were good, but the second one did not reach the debut’s level of aggression and velocity. Such signs of effeminacy always make me disgruntled and in my nightmares the early nineties appear, when all the old heroes ran away from thrash as if the genre suddenly had bad breath. But all-clear: Scarlet Anger don't switch back and forth between thrash and less massive styles, but rather pay homage to the classic, pure orientation of their genre. This is always most evident when the gentlemen push straight ahead and fire off jagged riffs. It was precisely such eruptions that once established thrash as the neck-breaking alternative to conventional heavy metal. They once gave thrash that special flavour and we may not forget that traditional metal had already tasted good.

However, Scarlet Anger do not act one-dimensionally. It therefore comes as no surprise that mid-tempo parts play an important role as well, catchy lines every now and then are not forbidden and it is a fact that the musicians are not allergic to one or the other melody. The sinister title track even houses an “ohoho” sing-along section – and it is not an embarrassing one. The guitar work of the song spreads a lot of expressive, slightly menacing vibes and the dynamic mid-part also leaves its mark impressively. In addition, of course, there are the powerful and charismatic vocals of Joe Black. And so the quintet convinces with a coherent overall appearance. Moreover, the songs form a very homogeneous album. With respect to their desired sound, Scarlet Anger have a clear vision and therefore they see no reason for “original” experiments. I appreciate this very much – it speaks for the band’s authenticity and integrity.

With the somewhat feeble 'Divided' the dudes run out of breath temporarily, but fortunately it remains the only downer here. Martyr is a strong work with a clearly defined, sharp and powerful production. Scarlet Anger's output is no revolutionary masterpiece but definitely worth discovering. I cannot say that it shows any signs of innovation. But that’s no problem for an old school thrash maniac like me. I enjoy the highlight 'No Time' with its cleverly interspersed calm sequences and almost any other track, because they are aggressive, unpretentious and compact. So if you are one of those who like albums like Artillery’s “By Inheritance”, Mortal Sin’s “Face Of Despair” or Heathen’s “Breaking The Silence” should doubtlessly lend an ear to Martyr.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Review by Greg on January 20, 2024.

Like almost every other reviewer I've come across so far, I stumbled upon Scarlet Anger when casting an eye over the metal scene in one of the smallest states in the world, Luxembourg. The guys have been dedicating themselves to thrash, although far from the most extreme variety, since 2007, and are now at their 3rd full-length effort, the here presented Martyr, a whopping eight years after their last sign of life (2016's Freak Show). What can we expect from it?

Well, after a quick look at the sophomore's horror aesthetic and cool song titles not devoid of humour, Martyr looks like a step back in terms of presentation. All the ingredients for a headfirst downfall into alternative/metalcore (think Lost Society, Shrapnel, Ultra-Violence... wait, how come there are so many of them?!) seem to be in place, but thankfully the music is what really counts, and it tells a very different story. The rather Teutonic-esque commanding vocals of Joe Block catch the listener's ear, and coupled with the strategic melodic tendencies, as well as uber-polished production, easily recall Kreator's output in the new millennium. It was this sterile sound that tempted me to suggest the band to save a bit of money in the studio next time, but thinking back on their home country's fame, budgets arguably aren't that great of an issue...

Leaving stereotypes aside, the roughly 35 minutes of Martyr come and go mostly without fanfare. Okay, the album isn't deprived of quality stuff, to be honest. 'The Destroyer' is an excellent opener, for example, offering more or less Scarlet Anger's whole array of weapons – tempo changes, continuous (if hardly elaborate) lead sections, you name it. Closer 'Behind The Mask' is fundamentally similar and another highlight, scoring with a speed-infused character and possibly the best use of those lead harmonies in the interesting central bridge, equipped with a killer solo as well. Now, the first and last songs in an album are always bound to be remembered, but in this case, apart from being the longest ones, they're also the most appealing, by some margin. While there's no immediate, drastic drop in quality (the nicely executed groove/thrash attitude of 'No Time' and title-track is sure to please fans of Pro-Pain or Korzus, to say), it's safe to say the dudes weren't at their most inspired throughout the middle part of the tracklist. I'm struggling to remember anything from the groovy 'Akrasia', although even the fastest ones (still far from blisteringly fast, to clarify) feel rather inoffensive. Aiming for the constant epic refrain soon gets redundant as well, but 'Divided' is partly salvaged by its neat quasi-Testament licks, at the very least.

All in all, my first foray within the Luxembourgish boundaries was no doubt a strange one. Martyr is a competent, yet hardly revolutionary work. However, its short duration and couple of choice cuts might make it worth a spin, especially if you, for some reason, can't help but wonder how they do it in Europe's richest place.

Rating: 6.7 out of 10

Review by Alex on August 11, 2019.

Why would you want to name your band Pathetic if your metal is anything but that? Released independently through digital and physical formats, Rat King sounds like a near veteran effort. Hailing from Canada, these three chambered canons have put their first full length recordings for the multitudes to try digesting if their appetites are up for a plate-full; as this record is one that takes the longer path to marinate the effect into the mind of the listener/s. Neither over-produced, nor under-produced, Rat King is a record being tugged by the old and pristine era of death metal; dispensed prudently by three capable musicians, the music here is an ornate representation of death metal that highlights the grim and disastrous possibilities looming, that are magnified daily and forgotten easily. 

Heavily guitar driven songs with graveling vocals and carefully managed tempered drumming; this debut from Pathetic combines these three elements to formulate an attentive though still vitriolic body of sounds. Rat King being a 57-minute-long album is packed with memorable tunes that is devoid of any flatness. ‘Natural Born Losers’, ‘Going Postal’, ‘Frozen to Death (The Starlit Tours)’ and ‘Empty Threat’, are all well composed songs that make good use of their respective lengths when factoring in the musical abilities of each member. Occurring within the waves of guitar riffing is a distinct focus on actual song structure with the primary aim being channeled towards efficiency and efficacy. Through the engineering of a composite mix, the overall music resembles a work of connectivity rather than appearing detached. Blast beats are adequate and give worthy fortification to the guitar leads; riffs are sometimes technical and candid but don’t present themselves as being filler or disconnected from the album’s primary nature, and the vocals possess a matching vim and are at the very least convincing; they seem to have been influenced by those of Dead Congregation’s Anastasis. Drum wise the performance is just as commendable as the supporting aspects mentioned; though not too complicated, it gives passage for the text-book, death metal guitar leads and solos. 

The music here deals with many social issues, with some being significantly greater than others. They are easily made clear by the multiple samples preceding several songs through familiar dialogue from movies, such as "Escape from Alcatraz" among others, and stand out in giving the listener an idea of what topic is being juggled at the time. I like the brutal weight of reality in death metal, especially when it is carried out in an organized manner. I say this because the themes brought to light are not randomly collected and tossed into Rat King just for the sake of; instead, they appear to have a domino effect to them or a relationship of sorts. I won't go into detail about this as it would make this review even longer and more irritating to read, but if you give a deep analysis of what's being presented, you may see what the narrative of Pathetic is on the record. The instrumentation plays a major role in magnifying the weight of the topics via use of overwhelming guitar leads, mammoth vocals and a rampaging drum performance on a brutally primal snare tone. The measure of this undertaking is immense, and for a debuting full-length release Rat King inserts itself amongst the best death metal records released in 2019 thus-far. The only bother I have has to do with the band-name, because the music is well above the average competency. Rat King is a mental pillaging, a serious blow to the psyche and perceptions of humanity.

Rating: 8.2 out of 10