Okay, let’s get into the new record now. The 45-minute album features six new tracks ranging in length from just under fiver to almost ten minutes. It was recorded at SkyHammer Studio by Chris Fielding, and mastered by James Plotkin (Khanate, O.L.D.) with excellent results. The sound quality is really good and skull-crushingly heavy. I like the vocals since they are more like war cries or triumphant anthems than for example deathly growls or just harsh screaming that is pretty common with this kinds of heavy doom metal bands. There are also some psychedelic effects on the guitars from time to time to make things more interesting. Most of the stuff is slow and heavy, but they also throw in some hooks and a little faster parts which is cool. Otherwise things might get a bit boring after a while. Conan has been compared to bands like Eyehategod, Sunn o))) and Ahab, and there are definitely some similarities, while Conan still has something unique of their own. The long opener “Crown of Talons” is slow, gloomy and heavy stuff. The monotonous but highly effective vocals kick in after three minutes. It’s amazing how so simple stuff kicks ass so hard. “Total Conquest” starts off with some phased guitar which sounds cool. This one also has a bit more complicated and interesting rhythms and gets occasionally faster. The end riff reminds me of Celtic Frost which can never be a bad thing! One of the live highlights from the new album seems to be “Foehammer” that has more fierce energy than most of the band’s other tracks, although there are also slow doom parts, or course. This will get the people moshing for sure… Great! “Gravity Chasm” has cool doom boogie beat, and rocks hard too. Then we’ve got “Horns for Teeth” that is another killer track that sort of reminds me of early Celtic Frost or Hellhammer or even Dream Death but the sound is heavier and harsher, of course… Some very cool riffs on this one! The nine-minute “Altar of Grief” starts off with just a simple drum thing and bass. The guitar joins in after a minute or so, and things get extremely heavy and doomy. Phew! Later on there’s also some vocals. It’s good to have a slow and gloomy one to finish the record, I think, even though in the very end they rock a bit faster again. To sum it up: what we have here is a massively heavy, gloomy and loud album with no unnecessary gimmicks (or guitar solos) and it sure kicks ass. Go get the album and also be sure to catch the band live on their European tour right now since they play crushingly loud and truly maim!
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