Review by JD on May 16, 2009.

I have been waiting for the Anglo-Scandinavian explosion that is GraVil to release this one. I had given their past release that was aptly called "Something Eorth Chasing" EP a rating of 8.8 out of 10... now I have this brand new CD in my hot hands... and I am as exited as I felt when I had heard my first Iron Maiden gig so long ago now.

'The Age Of Corruption' blasts out of my speakers, and floors me from the very first beat that enters my mind. Maturity, brutality meets such overwhelming talent... they certainly have combined all of this to make a metallic force that can never be called lame or average. In mixing so many styles of metal together while also bringing so much originality as well, they succeeded in the creation of a amalgamated sound that is far beyond most scope that metal has taken on lately.

Full on Death Metal, Metalcore, Thrash and even some shades of old school Power Metal come together with that elusive X-factor that equals up to the purest of raw talent... ending up making everyone know that they just might be seeing the future of metal is right there. I had seen that so clearly on their "Something Worth Chasing" EP. The potential of how damn good they could get. Right now, GraVil have proven that in spades, and I see even more than last time that they have boundless greatness to come.

At the core of this band, there are only two main people (Gra, vocals and Vil who does everything else on the recording), they also have a guest on keyboards while trying to settle on a few others for live shows. It is more than just scary when you realize just how good these guys are... and the addition of the others just makes them what I have coined 'sonically lethal'.

I rated GraVil very high for all of the right reasons... GraVil deserves every last one of those points. Raise the horns, the metal army's elite just has gotten a new commander in chief coming into the picture... and their out to make you believe and make you throw that salute.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 9.5
Atmosphere: 9.5
Production: 10
Originality: 9.5
Overall: 10

Rating: 9.7 out of 10

Review by Felix on May 2, 2019.

Cendres de Haine? Honestly speaking, I had forgotten that I possess an album of this group. Well, the duo from Switzerland seems to be an insider tip. Three full-lengths, but no reviews so far. This speaks for itself. However, the here presented album is not totally bad. The hollow sound of the snare and the production as a whole are not convincing, but they also do not destroy the overall impression completely. Nevertheless, the album suffers from different wounds. Generally speaking, the dudes release a black fury ("Sommeil Ivre"). However, sometimes they want to generate a hypnotizing atmosphere, but the guitar work fails. Tremolo picking alone is not enough, everything stays on an average level. Bands like Do Skonu or Vietah can do this kind of metal much more efficiently. And the fact that the fourth song should have been shortened does not make things better.

Nevertheless, whenever the band starts to trigger a storm of black metal, it cannot be ignored that the ruthless parts of the compositions have a certain flair. Cendres de Haine do not consist of the best songwriters the world has ever seen, but misanthropic songs like "Foi en Décomposition" are performed with passion. To be honest, I don't think that the compositions suffer from a wrong attitude of the band members. I do not doubt their integrity. The problem seems to be that they cannot reach a higher level, no matter how hard they try. That's slightly tragic, but it matches the mediocre production. Sometimes the guitars are sidelined by the mix of vocals and drums and it goes without saying that this way of proceeding is doomed to failure. Speaking of the vocals, they echo over the rumbling sound of the instruments and add nicely insane screams occasionally, but they do not show up with any kind of individual feature.

Does anybody know why the formation decided to cover Agent Steel? Me neither! This speed metal song does not fit the context, neither in terms of music nor in terms of the vocals. Cendres de Haine pull down the classic on their usual level and that's nothing less but a cardinal sin. Stop violating the anthems of the pioneers! The best detail of this adaption is that it brings the album to an end. All in all, the songs of Nihil Mirari are too weak to leave footprints. If they show the full potential of the duo, it might be a good idea to lay down the guitars and drink some beer instead, even though there exist a lot of worse works in the metal galaxy.

Rating: 6 out of 10