Emerging from the murky shadows in Kingston-Upon-Hull in 2010, Battalions have made a name for themselves in the every growing UK underground metal scene with their groove laden and hook centric riffs. Following up their 2018 album Forever Marching Backwards, fourth album King Of A Dead World sees them back and more colossal than ever. With a change in personal during the covid lockdowns and a fresh start in mind, Battalions revisit their roots in DIY sludge and hardcore to create a ruthless album. Born out of the destruction of the world, King Of A Dead World is a ruthless album filled to the brim with relentless aggression.
“Who wants to be the king of a dead world?”, is the question that sparked the inspiration behind King Of A Dead World. As the erosion of humanity, the financial burden of a destructive war, the ravaging torment the planet is going through because of global warming and the battering of the Earth’s resources were laid bare, the abject rage contained in this album is highly combustible and incredibly relatable. Battalions have vented their visceral anger with a merciless barrage of sonic fury. As connoisseurs of all things sludgy and heavy, the Hull based quartet have unleashed a towering and colossal effort that wastes no time in hailing down furious bomb blasts of memorable, hook based riffs. From start to finish you’ll be addictively nodding along to the infectious grooves like the Churchill dog. As the DIY hardcore influence shines through with the sharper guitar tones and cleaner drums, everything feels more concentrated and precise. Battalions have a clear message to put forward and they do it with devastating efficiency. As world leaders continue to drag us deeper into the abyss, this album feels like the call to revolution as Battalions enlighten us to the stark misery that lies at our doorstep.
With all that in mind, leading single ‘Diagnosis Fucked’ leads the charge on this album, conceptually summing up the album in one distinct and volatile song title. While the upbeat grooving of ‘No Safe Place’ has a degree of desperation as Phil Wilkinson’s screeching vocals cut through the bewildering spiral riffing, leaving you a disorientated mess on the floor. From start to finish, the album is a dominating, foreboding force, which is demonstrated with the monstrous ‘Parasite’. If this album was an animal, it would be a snarling dog, rabid teeth soaked in venomous rage, ripping into the very throats of those who their anger is aimed at. It appeals deeply to your primal soul, motivating you to want to stamp out the incapable and inept people that got us into this torrid mess in the first place.
Despite the onslaught of aggression, King Of A Dead World is also a considerably expensive record, everything feels more spacious compared to the album’s fuzz soaked predecessor Forever Marching Backwards. Each instrument has more space to breathe, and due to this new and expansive sound, each riff is delivered with even more sludgy brutality. Moving away from the more stoner metal sound has done Battalions wonders as they now have the capacity to unhinge themselves and let loose. Which is proved by the agitated and chaotic nature of King Of A Dead World.
Battalions have surpassed themselves with King Of A Dead World. A brutally realistic observation of the unprecedented disorder and disillusion that we are all living through and a damning statement on the state of the world. With this newer hardcore influence, the sky is the limit for Battalions’ brand of grimy, rage filled sludge.