Have you heard? Desert Battles has been re-released by Arallu!! The 2018 release features new vocal recordings, new mixing, and new mastering.
Middle eastern death metal gods, Arallu, have resurrected a killer album. The re-released Desert Battles is every bit as heavy as their 2017 release Six. Of the current members, only Butchered and Pixel were in the band in 2009. Today, Assaf Kassimov (drums), Omri Yagen (guitars), and Eylon Bart (strings/percussion) contribute their musical mastery and they haven’t missed a beat.
To begin the descent to the underworld, the first track is Old Form of Evil. Yeah, so this track is about Satan (Old Form) bringing global warming to the world and unleashing the germs, insects, and plagues that have long been held dormant in the frozen ground on the poles. The hand of evil is coming near and “Evil doesn’t care, he is only eager for the kill!” Sinister stuff.
War, death, destruction, all common themes for many of the tracks. They obviously have some hatred for the neighboring middle eastern countries.
My favorite track is Desert Genii Storm. Listening to the traditional Israeli instrumental lead-in, you wonder where this song is going. Then my ears start to bleed with the racing guitars supported by a blistering double bass section. Incredible. Just when you feel like your head is going to fall off, the pace slows to give us metalheads a break. Track after track, the guys from Jerusalem bring the intensity one would expect with death metal.
Although this is a re-released album, the 2018 version has three additional tracks as well as a reordered track list. Any death metal fan should check out this recent release.
Rating: 4/5
The Metal Wanderlust 