The Haunted – Songs of Last Resort (Review)

The Haunted are a Swedish thrash metal band and this is their tenth album.

The first album from The Haunted since 2017’s Strength in Numbers is a big deal, at least around these parts. Containing 41 minutes of blistering high-octane thrash, The Haunted have returned, big style.

I’ve been a big fan of The Haunted ever since their debut album came out, so full disclosure – you won’t get a whole lot of objectivity here. Despite this, I fail to see how anyone could dislike Songs of Last Resort if they are any way a fan of the thrash metal or melodic death metal styles. I mean, what’s not to like? This is The Haunted running at full strength.

Well-recorded, well-written, well-performed; Songs of Last Resort is murderously good. All of the musicians are on fire, playing with energy and skill. The drums are foundational, but have enough flourishes and detailing to be worth listening to alone. The riffs are lethal, and the solos molten. The band brutalise with blunt force aggression, but also insert melodic colour and emotive highlights where they need to. All of this is arranged around hooks that dig deep, and a punishing fury that is sure to ignite mosh pits everywhere. It’s great to hear the singer’s charismatic roaring shout once more too. He sounds possibly better than ever.

The songwriting is simple, yet effective. That doesn’t mean it’s without nuance or intelligent structure, but it does mean that the songs easily and quickly hit the mark, causing maximum damage. Multiple listens allow them to grow in power, making for a very moreish album that’s extremely enjoyable. No song is filler, and all absolutely slay in their own way. Even Blood Clots – a track I expected to be a throwaway interlude – is a worthy inclusion, as it’s a short near-instrumental that acts as an intro to the following song, (although I have to wonder why it wasn’t just included as part of Salvation Recalled itself?). Regardless, this is a great record.

This is prime The Haunted. Old-school you might say, only it sounds so vibrant and potent. Songs of Last Resort is electrifying. More than that, it reminds me just how good thrash and melodeath can be in the right hands.

Essential listening.