War! That's the first thing I thought when the drum beat opened the militarized fever of "Apex Terror", the newest album by French Black Metallers OTARGOS. And it was the right type of intro too as this opening title track is vicious and unforgiving, heavy, at times slow paced while acertaining your state of mind into a manner of craze, anger and violence.

On the other hand, as it would seem, OTARGOS haven't been strangers to melodic inputs, their guitaring efforts are top notch, plenty of times managing to fill in for the keyboards. I believe that you will bear witness to that on "Fleshless - Deathless", a slow, melodic and superbly deep. "Fallout" features some of the most furious Black Metal on this album, pounding hard on your mental state with a never ending barrage of deadly ammunition.

You can finally catch a breath on "Xeno", the short one minute interval, possibly too short lived in my bill, yet the next bombardment isn't far and becomes a reality with "Drone", while being slower than much of the rest of the album, it's no less powerful in comparison to its list's peers.

OTARGOS certainly appears to be full of power and energy as "Apex Terror" is not for the faint of heart, it's destructively heavy and unyielding, an impressive Black Metal symphony. And while the record isn't perfect, it's undoubtedly recommended for any fan of the genre.