ARCH ENEMY — Khaos Legions (review)

ARCH ENEMY — Khaos Legions album cover Album · 2011 · Melodic Death Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
UMUR
"Khaos Legions" is the 8th full-length studio album by Swedish melodic death metal act Arch Enemy. It´s the first album with original material since "Rise of the Tyrant (2007)". The band did release "The Root of All Evil" in 2009, which is an album with re-recordings of tracks from the first three Arch Enemy albums, "Black Earth (1996)", "Stigmata (1998)" and "Burning Bridges (1999)", so it´s not like they haven´t been active. "Khaos Legions" was released through Century Media Records in May 2011.

The music on the album is unmistakably the sound of Arch Enemy. This is more or less how they have sounded since Angela Gossow joined the band around the turn of the millenium. A mostly heavy and pounding mid-paced melodic death metal style. The tracks are vers/chorus structured and quite easily accessible considering that this is death metal (albeit with a strong traditional heavy metal element). Angela Gossow´s growling vocals are as over-processed as ever and the Amott brothers deliver one sweet melodic lead after another. Their lead work, wether it is harmony lead themes or solos, are outstanding. While I think it´s a kinda cheap trick by now I especially enjoy when they enter neo-classical territory. All tracks are pretty much of equal quality. Few lows but not many highs either.

"Khaos Legions" is however still a quality melodic death metal album by one of the leaders of the genre. The fact that it´s maybe a bit too polished, rather formulaic and doesn´t differentiate itself much from earlier releases by the band probably aren´t major issues for most of the hardcore fans. As a more casual listener I can´t say I find the album to be a revelation in any way and to me the 54:41 minutes of playing time quickly become a bit of a drag. You can´t deny quality though and this is a well produced, well composed and professionally delivered album fully deserving a 3.5 star (70%) rating.
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