Maximum Metal Rating Legend

Polish death heads Vader released the 'Iron Times' EP over the summer. That pre-cursor contained two new studio cuts, "Parabellum" and "Prayer to the God of War", both of which are included here on this new full-length from the band entitled 'The Empire'. After a really impressive 2014 effort in 'Tibi et Igni' I had wondered if the band could keep up the momentum. 'The Aftermath' once again sounds good with the familiar production standards of long-time Vader collaborators the Wieslawski brothers. In comparison to the previous album I think the band shortened up the songs. This one weighs in at 32 minutes in length, a full ten minutes shorter than 'Tibi et Igni'. With that reduction in length comes a lot of songs that are "punky" fast. While Vader have made their mark with a ton of thrash vehicles, I tend to like the mid-paced crunch of these extreme acts. "Prayer to the God of War" is a standout cut along with "Iron Reign" yet both of those songs aren't quite as good as "prime" Vader. "Genocidius" is a melodic cut with a blast-beats and some higher screams from Peter. I love the double-bass barrage of the speedy "The Army-Geddon", arguably one of the better Vader cuts in recent memory. This one will surely make my "best of" playlist of the band. The album closes with the stellar Slayer-styled "Send Me Back to Hell".