On their tenth proper album, British blackened grind duo Anaal Nathrakh continue their musical evolution. A New Kind of Horror is the type of album they have been progressing towards for quite a while, with a more focused clean vocal attack and Dave Hunt’s best performance in that arena to this point.
He is still quite capable of shredding vocal chords given a moment’s notice as well. “The Reek of Fear” in particular has Hunt doing his best King Diamond impression with falsettos flying in between furious drum and riff sections.
Upon its initial release, “Forward!” had longtime fans of the band worried. It is a curious choice for a first single, but it is a much more accessible song than many in this vitriolic back catalog. So if that was the purpose for machine gun noises used to punctuate riffs, so be it.
The aforementioned track is a also a reminder that the band will likely continue down this path and the Codex Necro and even In The Constellation of the Black Widow days are long gone.
“New Bethlehem/New Death Futures” and “Obscene As Cancer” will make longtime fans of the band happy, particularly those who enjoyed the latest run of albums. The vocal style is familiar with shrieks and calmer spoken sections to break up some of the blasting percussion, even sounding borderline pretty on top of that.
A New Kind of Horror is a grower for a band that usually has a pretty quick hook for me. As a longtime fan of the band, this might not be my preferred direction for the band, but it is a fun album nonetheless. They may be a different band than in previous eras (in sound only), but this album is far from the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
(released September 28, 2018 on Metal Blade Records)
I’ve listened to it a couple of times today and I quite like it. Good review.