### Skeletonwitch: Breathing the fire

#### 19/01/10 || Euthanatos

I liked these guys instantly when I listened to “Beyond the permafrost”. Another American band taking part in the thrash metal revival of the late 2000’s, and in my book, they were amongst the elite. Would they stand the test of time? That’s the question.

One thing that surprised me in a bad way right upfront is how Chuck’s vocals sound just like Angela from Arch Enemy. That’s no demerit, by the way, as Angela’s vocals are decent enough. They’re just not very appropriate for thrash metal, at least as far as I see it. The vocals were better in “Beyond the permafrost”, had more identity to them. They still sound good, though, so let that slide for now.

Song-writing? Skeletonwitch are still blurting out thrash riff after thrash riff, and I particularly like the ones in “Longing for domination”, which is fucking epic, but on the whole, I also felt “Beyond the permafrost” was better on that aspect. Not many songs on “Breathing the fire” are as memorable as “Longing”, although, listening to the album as a whole, it still is a pleasurable experience if you’re into traditional thrash metal.

The band has, in their defense, tried some different stuff this time around, as can be heard in stuff like ““Stand, fight and die”, and frosty-black-metally moment. Curiously, the band excels doing that, which makes one think if straight-forward thrash metal is really their game for the future.

While lackluster when compared to its predecessor, “Breathing the fire” does come out of the furnace as a fun album that shows a band which is maturing, but still finding its place musically. Too early to sign them off, but I’ll be watching closely the next moves. Hopefully they’ll get their groove back and the vocals become less death metal.

The cover: Well, this just looks like shit, doesn’t it?

- Information
- Released: 2009
- Label: Prosthetic
- Website: Skeletonwitch MySpace
- Band
- Chance Garnett: vocals
- Nate Garnett: guitars
- Scott Hedrick: guitars
- Evan Linger: bass
- Derrick Nau: drums

- Tracklist
- 01. Submit to the Suffering
- 02. Longing for Domination
- 03. Where the Light Has Failed
- 04. Released from the Catacombs
- 05. Stand Fight and Die
- 06. The Despoiler of Human Life
- 07. Crushed Beyond Dust
- 08. Blinding Black Rage
- 09. Gorge Upon My Soul
- 10. Repulsive Salvation
- 11. Strangled by Unseen Hands
- 12. …and into the Flame