Band: Hatesphere
Title: To The Nines
Label: Napalm Records
Distribution: Rough Trade Benelux
Release date: 27/03/2009
Review: CD

The Austrian label Napalm Records was especially known for its underground Black Metal releases during the early years, more Gothic-oriented material afterwards, and in mean time the label is also ‘specialised’ into great Folk / Viking-recordings. However, throughout the years, the label also signed some bands that play ‘another’ kind of Metal. There are not many Thrash-bands on the Napalm-rooster that I know (Fission, Hurtlocker, Wolfspack Unleashed), yet recently the Danish top-act Hatesphere signed a deal with them.
Hatesphere were formed in 1992 as Necrosis, but it wasn’t until the moniker changed in 2000 to become one of the most important bands from Denmark nowadays. The band was able to release several (mini) albums on ‘bigger’ labels (Scarlet, SPV), and they went on tour in Europe, Japan and even China (!). In 2007, after the release of Serpent Smiles And Killer Eyes and many live performances (Wacken Open Air, Roskilde, a Polish tour with Behemoth, a European tour with Aborted and Dagoba), front man Jacob Bredahl and Hatesphere parted ways, yet new growler Jonathan ‘Joller’ Albrechtsen is a worthy successor!
The first result of the collaboration between the band and the label is To The Nines, which lasts for almost thirty five minutes, and which was recorded again with Tue Madsen (production, mix, mastering, engineering) (The Haunted, Disbelief, Aborted, Exmortem, Urkraft amongst many others) at the famous AntFarm Studio in Aarhus, Denmark. Personally I didn’t like the former album, Serpent Smiles … that much; I think I missed the conviction of the former releases. That’s why I’m so glad to hear that Hatesphere found back the necessary power and inspiration. To The Nines might be the heaviest, most intense Hatesphere-album to date, yet it’s the most captivating one too. Joller is such a great growler, he has an enormously deep, brutal and powerful throat that perfectly fits to the Thrash / Death-assaults. The tempo varies a lot: from very slow over mid-tempo, through pretty fast to blasting. The tracks are technical and sound timeless because of both the modern production and that certain nineties-approach. Every detail is in harmonious equilibrium with each other, the balance ‘melody-brutality’ comes with a natural flair, and it makes this album the ultimate Hatesphere-recording to date!

89/100

Ivan Tibos.