HATE is a Polish Blackened Death band that is somewhat overshadowed by their countryman BEHEMOTH and VADER, with whom they will inevitably be compared, but still is a veritable institution that has been around since 1991. At the present day, HATE has two core members: frontman and founding member Adam Buszko and top-notch drummer Paweł Jaroszewicz, former member of VADER, who is also involved in a bunch of other bands and projects such as the mighty Death/Grind band ANTIGAMA or newly in "fake" BATUSHKA (sorry guys, you gave us no choice, we have to distinguish the two bands somehow...). HATE is a productive band that drops an album regularly every two or three years, "Auric Gates of Veles" is their tenth studio album, and the first album released since they've left Napalm Records and signed with Metal Blade. There has been a slight change in direction in HATE's sound lately, their music has a more prominent Black Metal vibe now, aggression is somewhat toned down a notch and somber or evil atmospherics gain prominence.

"Auric Gates of Veles" picks up where "Tremendum" has let off, HATE is a consistent band, maybe somewhat too consistent - I don't think anyone expects big surprises on a HATE release at this point. The album is pretty lean, clocking just under the fortieth minute mark, and contains eight tracks. There are some good hard-hitters on the album. The opener "Seventh Manvantara" certainly is one of them: it has a somber, captivating atmosphere and a powerful chorus. "Sovereign Sanctity" is another stand-out song that was chosen as the single from this album for a good reason. It is a somber slow-burner with a big climax, that feels truly cathartic and spellbinding. There is variety on the album - there are more somber, atmospheric songs, like the title song, and other that are more aggressive in tone, like "Path to Arkhen" that comes right after "Sovereign Sanctity". All songs are well composed, the riffs and guitar work are great, Paweł Jaroszewicz sounds consistently like an infernal metronome that sets the pace of the torture of damned souls in Hell, but most of them don't really stand out. I'm not saying that the songs are dull - they can be captivating, hypnotic, but they pale somewhat in comparison with the songs that I've highlighted.

Overall, "Auric Gates of Veles" is a solid release from these Poles, but feels a bit monotonous, and is a bit unbalanced in terms quality. But I still can recommend it - HATE don't have a reputation of some of the best Blackened Death bands out there for no reason...