Ever since 1994, Australia-based duo Abominator has been through a lot. Founding members Chris Volcano and Andrew Undertaker first met in 1994, recorded their first demo in 1995, and since, countless members have gone through Abominator. Both members are experienced, too, as Volcano is ex-member of nine bands, ranging from ambient metal to straight up death metal, while Undertaker has had his fair share of bands under his belt. Their latest release, a solid decade after their last album, features the original two continuing the mix of black and death metal, as well as war metal. The release was, (unlike their sound), pretty silent, with no singles being released on streaming platforms. That doesn't mean this wasn't an anticipated project, as their collected fans were waiting ever so patiently since 2015 with "Evil Proclaimed." It's successor, "The Fire Brethren," released on Halloween via Hells Headbangers, couldn't be more anticipated.

Jumping straight into this album without any singles to warn me of their sound ahead of time, the first song of this 47-minute project opens eerily - as eerily as the album artwork! I thought about turning my lights on in my room because I admittedly got a little spooked at the first minute. As the music of "The Templar's Curse" seeps in, I get the feel. It's dissonant, murky, and deep. Black metal elements, death metal attitude. "Underworld Vociferations" follows, and this is one of the few times I ever have to search up what definitions - "vociferations" are loud shouts made in protest. The pummeling drums and flying solos make the song quite enjoyable. The vocals do sound like vociferations, too. They're unique, and sounds of screeched gutturals, combining the black and death worlds. "Covens for Azmodeus" is next, and Google is working overtime for me. For those who didn't know, Asmodeus is the demon of lust. The track's got some groove to some of it's parts, but keeps the rawness. The longest track, in both character length and time is next, as "Progenitors of the Insurrection of Satan" clocks at 7:34. The time is used to build upon some atmosphere, as a white noise effect takes place as things start to blend in after a while - not a bad thing at all.

The second half of the album moves forward with "Author of all Calamity," where the death metal instrumentation shines more than others. A highlight of the project so far for that reason, and a very nice track. Following is "Desolation Epoch," and what more can I say? Another pretty solid song of death-infused black metal! There could be some more work on not making all tracks sound quite so similar, but when the sound is alright, it's not as much as a bother. "The Fire Brethren" carries the album's name, and carries it well. The ghastly vocals fit like a glove with this track. Finally, the closing song, "Sulphur from the Heavens,"  also crosses the seven-minute mark. There's some parts near the end that tread near the thrash metal area in my opinion, as instruments get faster, which is welcome in my book, so I can get my head to do some moving, too.

"The Fire Brethren" is a solid album from Abominator, with a sound that is a bit muddy at first. When your ears adjust, however, it's oddly pleasant, and as mentioned earlier, provides a similar effect as white noise - studies agree as well. Metal sometimes does give off white noise effects on listeners. The waves of drums, distant vocals, and chunky riffs reverberate in your ears, rarely breaking. There are some flaws in the department of song similarities, as white noise doesn't differentiate often. It's still a solid effort from Abominator. Was it worth a ten year's wait? I'll leave that up to their dedicated fans.