Long-established Turkish metallers SABHANKRA thunder onto the scene with their album "Death To Traitors." Occupying a delicious intersectional meeting place between melodic death metal and melodic black metal, SABHANKRA's fifth full-length is a thunderous musical hybrid that perfectly ties these two approaches into a seamless and deeply satisfying whole.

Album opener "Call To Arms" sets the scene perfectly. A ¾ tremolo riff with accompanying blast-beats on drums gives us a very clear idea of what to expect - black and death metal influences are evident here, and it's constructed so well the listener is dying to hear what comes next! Immediately we also have a grasp of the talent on display - guitar work is crushing, vocals are a veritable aural assault, and the drumming is tight and relentless (but just out of time enough in places to remind you that it is ultimately black metal we're listening to!) "Burn Down Their Halls" opens in a manner very much like the first track - similar kind of tremolo riff, ¾ timing. After a truly epic interlude section with throat singing, guitar triplets and a bass-only dive-bomb the track blasts into its own with no ferocity lost.

"Death To Traitors" opens in an almost thrashy manner before bouncing back to the blast-beats to which we have become accustomed by this point. We are tantalised with a brief, yet tasty, solo by the end though! "Heavens Are Fake" follows, maintaining from the word go the momentum that has been so carefully established by now. There's a palpably folksy feel here; Turkish folk music has clearly weaved its way into the rich heretical fabric, and it works so well!

"I Came This Far For Nothing", the longest track on the album, gets a suitably epic introduction complete with oscillating guitar triplets, creepy synths and a flurry of display from drummer Rıdvan. The melodic aspect of the melodic black metal moniker is most clearly displayed here, with a harmonised yet distressed guitar chorus, solo, before fading out on the same creepy vibes it opened with. Truly excellent stuff indeed! We close with "Awakened In The Dark", which flirts very strongly with the blackened thrash style familiar to fans of such class acts as HELLRIPPER or DEMISER. Carefully placed amongst the blackened brutality we even have a melodic acoustic section reminiscent of the more thoughtful, tender moments found in places like METALLICA's "To Live Is To Die." Indeed, there's a distinctly mournful lament on display here, right down to the lengthy fade-out, which to me suggests a lack of closure (anybody else out there psychoanalyse the music they listen to... no? Just me?)

In all seriousness, this is a seriously good album. Not only is it great in its own right, but since melodic black metal as a distinct subgenre can be so slippery to tie down, this stands as a very vivid exemplar of that style. These guys are well-practised in their craft and it shows in every way. This isn't just for hardcore black metal fans; this has universal appeal. Anyone who appreciates a good metal record, nay, a great metal record should listen to this. To the fine gentlemen who made this glorious unholy music I say, tebrik ederim! Keep up the great work!