With three previous albums under their belts, this is by no means War of Ages’ first time and with their fourth full-length album, Eternal, it is more than apparent that they are professionals at what they do. When you’re touring with big names like Hatebreed, Throwdown and Soilwork, you know you’re doing something right.

Right off the line, the album scorches with “Collapse”; a bottom-heavy bouncer, ignited by a solid battle cry and a melodic chorus to carry it all along. This was a fitting track to open the album up with. If you’re new to War of Ages like I am, an opener like this is bound to grab new fans by the neck and engrave “I am a War of Ages Fan” on their foreheads. “Aggression” is this band’s middle name and rightfully so. Eternal is filled to the brim with brilliant brutality so fasten your seatbelts, kids.

War of Ages can easily be compared to acts such as Hatebreed and Throwdown. With songs like “Failure” and “Your Betrayal”, the key double bass upholds the bottom end of these bangers, while the guitar section delivers your thick chugging riffs that push the remainder into overdrive. “Failure” opens up into a melodic chorus that will implore you to hit the repeat button. Fold when you are driven to do so. “Indecision” delivers more of what you’d expect from a metalcore assembly of this nature: bottom-heavy chugs and dueling guitars; a solid bassline and double bass to give it a good kick in the ass, and Leroy’s blistering battle cry.

Throughout the album, Leroy’s vocals can be closely compared to that of Hatebreed’s own Jamey Jasta or Throwdown’s Dave Peters. Growls, melodic chorus lines and battle cries are abundant on this album. On the track “Eternal” the band decided to mix things up a bit and brought on P.O.D.’s frontman Sonny Sandoval to head up the signature verse. Although I’m not necessarily a fan of P.O.D.’s music, I thought Sonny was awesome on the track and his presence added a much welcomed dynamic. Not only does this track deliver a verse and arrangement that sets it apart from the rest of the album, it also has one of the most memorable and infectious choruses. This is sure to be a crowd pleaser in venues and clubs across the globe. I just hope they can get Sonny to come on board and do the track live with them because he really polishes it with his contribution.

War of Ages closes up the album with a track that might throw some of you for a loop. “Instrumental” is exactly what you think it is: an instrumental and a good one at that. On this track, the dueling guitars really shine through. With the acoustic taking the lead and the clean electric following suit, the two take turns bringing the song and album to fruition. The band puts the brutal gloves down for a bit and really displays some of their raw ability. You won’t hear any battle cries, chugs or growls on this track, but I thought it was well done and it’s worth turning up. Although some might be disappointed that it doesn’t close the album out with the same brutality it opened up with, it stands as testament to what these guys are capable of.

War of Ages’ Eternal is a solid installment on the band’s resumé as well as a solid addition to the world of metal and hardcore. It delivers the brutality and aggression one comes to love from such a band, as well as technical finesse and devotion that shows through on each song. Although it’s not an absolutely perfect album and some songs offer up qualities you might have heard elsewhere, the formula is there and it’s solid regardless. Eternal is here to stay in my iTunes playlist and I will be checking out their previous releases as well. Add this one to your collection if you’re a fan of bands like Hatebreed, Throwdown and Killswitch Engage. I enjoyed this album.

4.0/5