''Solarflesh – A Gospel of Radiant Divinity'' is the eighth studio album by the Polish
death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, fe ...
band
Hate
Hatred is an intense negative emotional response towards certain people, things or ideas, usually related to opposition or revulsion toward something. Hatred is often associated with intense feelings of anger, contempt, and disgust. Hatred is s ...
. The follow-up to 2010's "Erebos" was recorded at Sound Division Studio in Warsaw with
Filip "Heinrich" Hałucha (
Vesania
Vesania (Latin for "insanity") is a Polish extreme metal band formed in 1997 by Orion, Daray and Heinrich. Later members were Annahvahr and Hatrah, who left the band in 1999 and was replaced by Siegmar.
Their first release, ''Moonastray'', wa ...
,
Decapitated
Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the i ...
) and Arek "Malta" Malczewski (
Behemoth
Behemoth (; he, בְּהֵמוֹת, ''bəhēmōṯ'') is a beast from the biblical Book of Job, and is a form of the primeval chaos-monster created by God at the beginning of creation; he is paired with the other chaos-monster, Leviathan, and ...
's sound engineer).
The CD was mixed at Hertz Studio in
Bialystok, Poland with producers Wiesławscy Brothers.
Track list
Reception
The album received mixed to positive reviews. Writing for
Revolver Magazine
''Revolver'' is a heavy metal music and hard rock magazine, published in North America. It has been in print since 2000, and is about both established acts and up-and-comers in heavy music. In the fall of 2017, ''Revolver'' underwent a brand ...
, Greg Pratt said that on Solarflesh, Hate "nailed the best of modern no-frills death metal" and that "With a production that’s pristine but not overdone, this album is the moment Hate have been working towards all these years", giving the album a 4/5. Madam X's review on Angry Metal Guy was more critical of the album, giving it 2.5/5 and concluding that "I’m hoping Solarflesh ends up being a grower. ATF Sinner’s vocal style is just as big, hostile and euphorically brutal now as back in 2010, and once cranked up full-ball, I already enjoy Solarflesh more than I did the first few times I spun it. Right now though, I don’t find the album that different to what Hate (and their Polish counterparts) have put out before and added to that the watered down sound there’s nothing driving me to pick Solarflesh over Hate’s Erebos masterpiece."
Metal Hammer gave the album a positive review, awarding it 7/10 and writing that "They sound particularly sinister this time out, and the flavour suits them."
Personnel
Personnel adapted from Allmusic.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Solarflesh - A Gospel of Radiant Divinity
2013 albums
Napalm Records albums