PRIMAL FEAR

Two years shy of their 30th anniversary, PRIMAL FEAR are still hammering away. The Germans have been among the most consistent and passionate advocates for pure heavy metal over the last three decades, and few would question founding members Mat Sinner (SINNER) and Ralf Scheepers's commitment to the cause. If there has been anything to complain about over their career, it has been that PRIMAL FEAR have occasionally released albums that felt like solid placeholders with little to add to either their legacy or to the evolution of traditional metal in general. But when your principal reason for existing is to rip people's heads off, the difference between, say, 2007's "New Religion" (a disappointment) and 2023's "Code Red" (not disappointing at all) is so subtle as to barely be worth commenting on. Ultimately, PRIMAL FEAR do what they do, and they do it better than just about everyone else. Mat Sinner is an unrelenting source for huge, anthemic heavy metal songs, and Scheepers is a man who sings everything with such gusto that even the most prosaic, cookie-cutter songs in the band's catalogue tend to blaze with more intense heat than anything their peers could manage. And when PRIMAL FEAR get everything right, they are largely unbeatable. "Domination" is one of those moments.

As fans have come to expect, this is an album of supremely catchy anthems. The production is huge and ruthlessly modern, but the spirit that runs through these songs is still firmly rooted in the old-school ethics that informed PRIMAL FEAR's self-titled debut 28 years ago. This is, to put it simply, exactly what power metal diehards want from their most reliable figureheads. "Code Red" was a strong effort that occasionally touched upon greatness, but "Domination" blows its predecessor out of the water as a matter of routine. From the opening crunch of "The Hunter", Sinner and Scheepers's intent is clear. Given that this is the first album to feature the band's latest lineup, new guitarist Thalía Bellazecca included, you could reasonably argue that this is the beginning of a new chapter, and one that PRIMAL FEAR are embarking upon with renewed enthusiasm. The most aggressive, quasi-extreme moments, from the crushing "Destroyer" through to the speed metal terror of "March Boy March" are delivered with the band's customary vigor, but both the instrumental execution and Scheepers's powerhouse vocals are noticeably more intense than they have been for several albums. There are also numerous songs that have hooks, melodies and choruses that outstrip the majority of their recent efforts: "Far Away" is a super-melodic tour-de-force, with strong echoes of HELLOWEEN's catchy precision, "Tears of Fire" is a non-stop emotional crescendo of toughness and triumph, "Heroes and Gods" has a chorus to kill for, and "Scream" is a neat encapsulation of PRIMAL FEAR's trademark sound, with Scheepers on particularly imperious form. Best of all, minor diversions from the mid-paced norm are as impressive as any in the band's history. In particular, the epic "Eden" is a very fine, grandiose ballad, and "I Am The Primal Fear" is the kind of charismatic, self-referential (semi) theme song that deserves a permanent place in the band's live sets. Even the closing, elegant respite of "A Tune I Won't Forget" is sweeter and sharper than any comparable song from earlier records. Anyone expecting jazz interludes or EDM bass drops will, of course, be bitterly disappointed. And thank Satan for that. Heavy metal is still the law, and PRIMAL FEAR continue to enforce it with rare aplomb.