Kronos Titans Awakening
Warpath Records WR007 2001
By Russell Garwood
Originally a thrash band, Kronos (named after Zeus father) started playing death metal in 1996. The band released their first demo in 1997, and after further personnel shifts and a demo the line-up settled. Currently standing as Jerome Grammaire (guitar and backing vocals), vocalist Christophe Geradin (ex-Bleeding), drummer Michaël Saccoman, Nicolas Temmar (guitar) and Thomas Viel on bass, the band have regressed from their earlier technical style to brutal death. The vox are harsh, grating, guttural growls with the more typical death rasps as a backing, accompanied by crunching, grinding guitars, blast-driven, pounding drums and heavy bass. As a change from brutality there are occasional touches of melody in an album which is otherwise a sheer slab of extremity, featuring Kristof from Depraved as a guest vocalist on Demence Of The Gnomish Warriors .
Standouts include opener Mashkhith for its violent guitars and pummelling drums, the slightly slower Enslaved By Madness, Eternal Mindtrap for the catchy melodic backing, and the unfortunately titled Disease Of God. Like all brutal death, this was written to provide numbing, bludgeoning noise and it succeeds. For this reason the album can feel largely monotonous if you are not into brutality, with the exception of a few songs which grab the interest. The clear, heavy as fuck production does the music justice and enhances the ferocious onslaught to the full, while the artwork, courtesy of Deather, is a pleasant change from the usual gorefest. With Titans Awakening Kronos have provided a fierce and barbaric wall of sound, a must for all longing for brutality. This is also a good, perhaps slightly more accessible, place to start for those new to the genre.
Warpath Records WR007 2001
By Russell Garwood
Originally a thrash band, Kronos (named after Zeus father) started playing death metal in 1996. The band released their first demo in 1997, and after further personnel shifts and a demo the line-up settled. Currently standing as Jerome Grammaire (guitar and backing vocals), vocalist Christophe Geradin (ex-Bleeding), drummer Michaël Saccoman, Nicolas Temmar (guitar) and Thomas Viel on bass, the band have regressed from their earlier technical style to brutal death. The vox are harsh, grating, guttural growls with the more typical death rasps as a backing, accompanied by crunching, grinding guitars, blast-driven, pounding drums and heavy bass. As a change from brutality there are occasional touches of melody in an album which is otherwise a sheer slab of extremity, featuring Kristof from Depraved as a guest vocalist on Demence Of The Gnomish Warriors .
Standouts include opener Mashkhith for its violent guitars and pummelling drums, the slightly slower Enslaved By Madness, Eternal Mindtrap for the catchy melodic backing, and the unfortunately titled Disease Of God. Like all brutal death, this was written to provide numbing, bludgeoning noise and it succeeds. For this reason the album can feel largely monotonous if you are not into brutality, with the exception of a few songs which grab the interest. The clear, heavy as fuck production does the music justice and enhances the ferocious onslaught to the full, while the artwork, courtesy of Deather, is a pleasant change from the usual gorefest. With Titans Awakening Kronos have provided a fierce and barbaric wall of sound, a must for all longing for brutality. This is also a good, perhaps slightly more accessible, place to start for those new to the genre.
