Olkoth are a death metal band from the US and this is their debut album.
At the Eye of Chaos contains 35 minutes of furious death metal mastery. The promo blurb says this is for fans of Nile, Hate Eternal, Hideous Divinity, and Vitriol, so you know you’re not getting out of this unscathed.
Olkoth are brutal. This is death metal that takes no prisoners and gives no mercy. At the Eye of Chaos is the sort of album that’s just very satisfying to listen to. The ferocious music is packed with the sort of riffs, blast beats, and growls that might batter and bruise, but are just so effortlessly fun to listen to.
Despite the brutalising speed that much of the album operates at, Olkoth do find the time to occasionally drop into a steamroller groove or to lace their assault with vicious melody. They even conjure up some malevolent atmosphere when it’s called for. Mostly the songs are a violent whirlwind of lethal riffs and punishing drums, with aggressive growls punctuating the storm like explosions. Olkoth know how to play this sort of death metal, that’s for sure.
If you’re a fan of the bands mentioned at the start of this review, or of just professional, well-written death metal, then there’s very little about At the Eye of Chaos to not recommend. Make sure that you turn up the volume and prepare for Olkoth’s assault.
Wonderbox Metal 