Urn â Demon Steel Review
By Mark Z.
As a U.S. government employee, Iâve spent way too much time lately thinking about RIFs and not enough time thinking about riffs. Fortunately, Finlandâs Urn is here to change that. Helmed by vocalist, bassist, and former guitarist Jarno HĂ€mĂ€lĂ€inen (a.k.a. âSulphurâ), this black/thrash troupe raised hell throughout the 2000s via albums like 666 Megatons and Dawn of the Devastation, both of which blasted with reckless abandon and hit with all the subtlety of a hand grenade. After years of silence following 2008âs Soul Destroyers, the group returned with a revamped lineup and more melodic sound on 2017âs The Burning, resulting in a rousing collection of blackened thrash anthems that was bogged down a bit by songwriting that often felt too cut-and-paste. With 2019âs Iron Will of Power, another revamped lineup helped Sulphur better combine the groupâs newfound melodic tendencies and more raucous sensibilities, making for a career-high that sounded like the forgotten little brother of Deströyer 666. On their sixth album, Demon Steel, Urn returns after six years to continue down that same path, mixing the black/thrash of yore with melodies even a folk metal fan could enjoy. But have they taken things too far?
FUKK NO! Rather, Demon Steel is one of those rare late-career albums that shows an extreme band maturing into something more complex, interesting, and catchy, all while still remaining vicious enough to satisfy those poser-crushers in our midst. The basic sound here largely remains the same: frantic and rushing guitars combined with fast and pummeling drums, tossed together with snarled vocals and a sense of epic fury. The soaring melodies that often appeared in the choruses of Iron Will remain; yet here, the addition of a second guitarist has allowed Urn to craft compositions that are more intricate than ever. Early highlight âAre You Friends With Your Demonsâ proves that it needs neither a question mark nor a decent title to succeed, commanding attention with the layered guitars of its chorus and the supreme melody that appears after that refrainâs second and third iteration.
And fortunately, plenty of the other nine tracks are just as strong. âHeir of Tyrants,â âBurning Bloodâs Curse,â and âRuthless Paranoiaâ offer perhaps the best example of Urnâs heightened maturity, as each song combines fierce riffing worthy of Aura Noir with sugary lead guitars that could have appeared on a Children of Bodom album. Turning the throttle further into overdrive, âIron Starâ and âTurbulence of Misanthropyâ charge forward on bouts of galloping, heavy-as-fuck riffs that sound like Iron Maiden dipped in molten steel, with the latter even offering some melodic black metal moments that recall Dissection. Even the albumâs introduction, âRetribution of the Dead,â is a winner, creating an effective buildup with immense chords, pounding drums, and snarls of âRise!â
Overall, thereâs little to complain about here. In addition to delivering plenty of swirling solos, returning guitarist âAxeleratörrâ works alongside new axeman âPestilent Slaughterâ to absolutely stuff these 44 minutes with great ideas, resulting in a record that probably contains more unique leads and riffs than the bandâs first two albums combined. Sulphur once again sounds venomous and commanding, though perhaps a bit more croaky and aged than before. That doesnât stop him from pushing himself, however, by embellishing songs like âWings of Infernoâ and âHeir of Tyrantsâ with powerful clean wails that make things feel extra mighty. The only real downside is that, with every track trying to be a big epic fist-raiser, things get a tad tiresome eventually. The closer, âPredator of Spiritforms,â feels a bit overshadowed by its predecessors, and while the mid-paced stomp of âWings of Infernoâ offers a bit of late-album variety, Iâd still love to have just one straight-ahead rager in the second half. Fortunately, the production is great, with a clear, balanced, and powerful sound that emphasizes the crystalline leads while giving the riffs plenty of bite.
Itâs been exciting to watch Urn grow from a pretty basic black/thrash band to one of the few older groups left in the style still producing worthwhile music. While Iâll always love the hammering and explosive sound of their early stuff, Demon Steel shows the band crafting songs that are more exciting, memorable, and well-written than anything theyâve done before. The result is a truly fantastic release thatâs sure to please everyone from diehard Desaster fans to casual blogreaders just looking for some good fukkin music to distract themselves from all the bullshit out there today. Push play, crank that volume, and BANG YOUR FUKKIN HEADS!
Rating: 4.0/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Osmose Productions | Bandcamp
Websites: facebook.com/urnofficial | instagram.com/urnmetal
Releases Worldwide: March 28th, 2025
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