Album review: Frozen Soul – No Place Of Warmth

Three albums in, and there’s no sign of cracks appearing in Frozen Soul’s ice-block intensity. In fact, No Place Of Warmth finds the Texan quintet harnessing their avalanche of frosty fury with even greater force than on 2023’s masterly Glacial Domination.

Having spent much of their time since that release on the road, Frozen Soul entered the studio light on finished material, but full of the momentum and near-telepathic instinct that hard-touring can bring. These 11 tracks are the sound of a band audibly in love with the music they make, pushing each other to go ever harder. Death metal rarely sounds as flat-out gleeful as it does when Eyes Of Despair kicks in, the distinctly Slayer-esque riff’n’drum intro pausing for vocalist Chad Green to growl the title and usher in a gloriously unrestrained guitar solo.

Guests Devin Swank from Sanguisugabogg and a livid Robb Flynn are at home within these crushing grooves, while a cameo from Gerard Way on the title-track finds the My Chem man sounding utterly possessed. However, the grandeur of that tune’s almost Paradise Lost-like guitar line demonstrates how effectively Frozen Soul can smuggle melody into their chilly darkness.

Similarly, Chad’s lyrics wield imagery to satisfy the most diehard horn-raisers while discussing real-world topics like grief and mental health. Mind you, Killin Time (Until It’s Time To Kill) does sound as deliberately dumb as its title suggests, closing the album with a blast of bouncy catchiness.

No Place Of Warmth offers the best argument yet that death metal can thrive in subzero conditions. Get your scarf and gloves on and submit to Frozen Soul’s chilly embrace.

Verdict: 4/5

For fans of: Obituary, Gatecreeper, Slayer

No Place Of Warmth is released on May 8 via Century Media.