Berzerker Legion – Chaos Will Reign (Listenable Records)
Wednesday, 25th October 2023
Recruiting seasoned veterans of the death/extreme metal community, Berzerker Legion started in 2016 through the heads/minds of Asphyx guitarist Alwin Zuur and Hypocrisy live axe man Tomas Elofsson. Seeing eye to eye on musical influences, they recruited Vader drummer James Stewart, Dark Funeral bassist Fredrik Isaksson and Wombbath vocalist Jonny Pettersson to round out the lineup – delivering a debut album Obliterate the Weak in early 2020, taking their time to execute the follow-up with Chaos Will Reign. The quintet chooses to intertwine the brutality of early American/UK death and the infancy stages of Gothenburg melodic death which creates this vortex of charming caveman meets harmony-infused aggression that is hard to resist.
The sinister rhythms, gargantuan tones, and addictive guitar melodies/harmony capabilities from the Zuur/Elofsson duo stand out from the opening moments of the title track and do not relent through the battle-tested closer “War Chant”. Stewart’s exemplary double kick prowess beyond his thunderous main tempo and galvanizing fill duties register at peak levels to those who appreciate the intensity and thorough knowledge of the genre at hand – even when slowing down in sections of “Choirs of Anguish”, there are bursts of BPM madness matching the tremolo-fueled musical underpinning. The versatility from track to track encompasses a wide swath of influences, as these musicians can combine the down to earth pummeling of acts like Obituary or Bolt Thrower next to 90’s Gothenburg death artists like Eucharist and At the Gates. Add in the deep, visceral growls plus the hang on the edge of your seat screams from Jonny during winning tracks like “Towards Oblivion” and tumultuous six-minute cut “Eternal Void” (the frantic speed as well as mid-tempo cultural transitions provide an entertaining whirlwind effect) and it’s clear that Berzerker Legion embrace a strong hook to crushing output philosophy.
Normally worry sets in on a melodic death meets old school-oriented release that tips the scales at eleven tracks in just over 50 minutes – but Chaos Will Reign does not exhaust the dynamic possibilities inherent as far as these musicians deliver. Berzerker Legion hopefully is just getting started in its underground to global conqueror adventures, as this is a punishing, rewarding record chock full of memorable songs that should appease anyone into the movement past or present.
