Review Summary: An impressive album that shows off the capabilities of Death Metal done right.
Despite the fact that they are French, it is quite clear that Kronos have had influences from all over the world. Colossal Titan Strife is laden with American thrash metal-esque breakdowns and rides while beautifully harmonized Iron Maiden-ish solos emerge from time to time. This is is all fine and well, but let us not forget what this album really is: brutal as f*** death metal.
One thing that immediately sets Kronos apart from the rest of its kind is the sheer amount of melody that is usually unheard of in brutal death metal. Yes, it is still very, "br00tal", but it never sacrifices musicianship nor technicality for the sake of being heavy.
Speaking of musicianship, it is superb in every regard here. While each of the band's members are extremely talented, there are no instances where they play fast and or masturbate on the guitar neck to show off. No riff or instrument ever feels out of place or tired, which also helps separate Kronos from many of their faulty brethren.
Lyrically, the band sings of the Roman/Greek pantheon, though, I will be extremely impressed if you can understand them without cheating and Googling the lyrics. This is due to the very impressive and unique vocals that sound about half growling and half pig squealing. While these may be the two most cliche forms of singing in metal, the execution here makes it sound incredibly unique. There are also back up vocals too. These have a very distinct, almost black metal yell aspect which, again, help give Kronos a unique feel.
Length-wise, the album is perfect. Unlike alot of similar bands, Kronos know not to overstay their welcome. With almost all the tracks clocking in at around four minutes, you would be hard pressed to get bored. Even with the short runtime, Kronos manage to pack a metric ton of creativity into each song and you will barely hear the same riff twice. From the all encompassing title track, the brutality never holds up and eventually culminates in the epic climax, Infernal Worms Fields.
I could elaborate on and on about how good these guys are, but I would be beating around the bush one too many times. Bottom line, if this sounds remotely interesting to you, do yourself a huge favor and check these guys out. You'll be glad you did.
