Twilight Dominion
[Earache Records]

With so many bands pushing the envelope of modern metal, it's so refreshing to hear a band like Usurper, who have no shame in embracing the history of extreme metal by paying homage to it. A throwback to mid-1980's thrash, death and black metal, they have forged a sound that is very familiar yet all their own. They take their metal very seriously, but there is an air of campiness and cliche that makes them fun to listen to. Combining the sounds of early Slayer, Celtic Frost, Hallow's Eve, Cathedral with a Gwar-ish vibe, Usurper's style often straddles the line between silly and serious.

Twilight Dominion continues their retro sound, and it is one of their better releases to date. As on every Usurper album, there are several metal anthems. "Metal Lust" and "I Am Usurper" are two of the better tracks here, and both have great choruses that will have you shouting along. The remaining tracks have a mix of styles, from the Celtic Frost-meets-Cathedral vibe of "Utopian Nightmare" to the black metal fury of Invincible Overlords".

Usurper are very capable musicians, as all players have decent chops. General Diabolical Slaughter's (?) "vokills" are straight out of the book of Tom G. Warrior, complete with his trademark "ugh!"'s and echoes. I really enjoyed his performance, as he has a great musial personality. Special mention must be made of bassist Jon Necromancer's performance. His lines and fills are creative and prominent, and he turns in some fine playing.

Produced by rock and metal veteran Neil Kernon (Dokken, Queensryche, Flotsam and Jetsam), Twilight Dominion has a warm and full sound. Vocals are clear and not too prominent, guitars are thick and full, bass is always audible, and drums are decently recorded.

Twilight Dominion is certainly not anything groundbreaking, but it is a great example of embracing the glory of the past and having fun with it. Hats off to Usurper for keeping the flame of the old school burning.