Frozen Soul – Glacial Domination

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Texan old-school death metal five-piece Frozen Soul unleashed its sophomore release “Glacial Domination” on May 19th, 2023, via Century Media Records. Taking their sound further into a heavy blizzard slab of raw death metal, the lineup of Samantha Mobley (bass guitar), Michael Munday (guitar), Chan Green (vocals), Matt Dennard (drums) and Chris Bonner (guitar) deliver a gripping power through the eleven new tracks. “Global Domination” defines the coherence of its riffing artillery by maintaining the energetic groove and the sheer quality of fusing galloping riffs into oppressive heaviness.

Frozen Soul ultimately manifests the classical brutality with their solid hitting riffs laid down by the hammering of the battery. The band managed to blend oppressive slow, catchy leads and faster tempos. The opening salvo “Invisible Tormentor” emphasizes the brute force of the grinding drums with the fortified guitars firing their cannon-like riffs thus making a brilliant start to the album’s opener. While some fans may criticize the band for sounding more in the vein of Bolt Thrower, the Texan formation has proven to be an outstanding caliber. Besides the remarkable double bass drums in the following track “Arsenal of War” engaging in the most destructive artillery showcasing a crushing oppressiveness through the tempos offering merciless grinding double bass drums and blitzkrieg riffing brutality.

There are countless relentless shifts in the album’s pacing that make songs like “Death and Glory” laden with power chords, filthy swagger, and ferocity. Chunky guitar riffs send shockwaves through the booming bass, and there is something definite about these hammering drums that bring intense ferocity. Frozen Soul on their second full-length album took these efforts to crush the listener with the utmost brutality. The guitar tone is massively powerful, while other tracks like “Morbid Effigy” is one of the highlights of the album, featuring vocalist and guitarist John Gallagher (Dying Fetus). Which begins with some atmospheric horror theme that makes me think of some 80s horror film. The guitars deliver slow lumbering riffs mixing groove with such speed and the blood-soaked gore of the dual guitars is instantly catchy.

The formula is similar to the first album there are no blast beats, but the drums propel plenty of grinding double kick drums and beefy down-tuned rhythm guitars encased in a glacier atmosphere giving a blast of shattering sound. The cold spooky themes create some ominous moments in a number of songs like the album’s title track “Glacial Domination”, another highlight of the album, this time featuring guitarist Matthew Heafy (Trivium). Frozen Soul seems to have honed their craft with organic riffs, grooves, and effective dynamics, the guitar department conveys massive riffing power. Giving a fair amount of catchy riffs, the lead guitar hooks are brilliantly placed in the tempos and there’s an overt sense of aggression in the guitar tone.

What separates this from the previous album, is that the aggression and dynamics have been amplified to the maximum level. All these merits show how Frozen Soul can distinguish itself from the other death metal acts. In fact, though the sophomore is heavier than the band’s first album “Crypt of Ice”, there are some faster and more brutal tracks, on one level the masterful performance shines throughout the forty-three minutes. When it comes to such quality and precision the Texan band crafts some catchy glacial lead guitar on the track “Frozen Soul”.  Riffs lend some blazing melodies with faster transitions and put an energetic motion that constantly invites some galloping groove with the masterful skill of drummer Matt Dennard.

The rumbling bass tone of Samantha Mobley comes like some angry machine sending instant sonic booms through the ominous sound of the thundering riffs on “Assimilator” and the drums ceaselessly pulverizing your skull with mighty crushing blows. With plenty of double bass proceeding on “Best Served Cold” a mammoth riffing assault drills a hole in your skull, the monstrous growls and the riffing move into a brutal chugging.

The twin guitars execute some crushing heaviness along with the drums on “Abominable” and the slow but in-your-face brutality slamming right like a cannon shot. Frozen Soul’s tight musicianship still remains as energetic and thrusting as ever before, with the final track “Atomic Winter” being played at a mid-slow crushing pace. The chunky guitar riffs come in the old school traditional death metal and utterly fierce full but the slow tempos and the riffs are larger than the granite monolith.

REVIEW SCORE

  • Music / Songwriting 10/10
  • Vocals / Lyrics 10/10
  • Mix / Production 10/10
  • Artwork & Packaging 10/10
  • Originality 10/10
10

“Glacial Domination” is so far one of my favorite albums of this year. This a superb grinding death metal record full of mid-tempo heaviness and packed with catchy rhythms and ferocity and comes highly recommended for fans of Bolt Thrower, Gatecreeper, and Pentacle.

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