True Defiance by Demon Hunter

Never a band to stray from its tried-and-true blueprint of bludgeoning Christian metal, Seattle’s Demon Hunter expands on its formula, making its sixth studio album both familiar and surprising. “Crucifix” teases listeners with scratchy, lo-fi thrash metal before cranking the volume (and production values) to purge one hell of a heaven-themed opener. Ryan Clark’s vocal control here is amazing: he relentlessly howls crazed guttural screaming into fast, phrased verses that can stop and turn on a dime. By the second song, “God Forsaken,” it’s evident that *True Defiance* is the quintet’s most aggressive album yet. Clark juxtaposes larynx-shredding screams that recall Ministry’s “Burning Inside” before pulling a Jekyll-and-Hyde duality with clean-toned croons that tower above his band’s sonic maelstrom. This polarity is even more contrasted in “My Destiny,” where the intelligible singing casts a melodic net of grappling hooks. Of course, no Demon Hunter album would be complete without a token ballad; “Tomorrow Never Comes” delivers in spades.

The sixth full-length outing from Demon Hunter dials up the religious themes to 11 while maintaining a dark and ominous luster that dutifully upholds heavy metal's core values of volume, aggression, and defiance.

8 / 10

If there’s only one well-known Christian metal band, it’s probably Demon Hunter. They’ve been out for over 10 years now and they've become somewhat of a household name. We always have to hope that when a well-seasoned band like Demon Hunter comes out with a new album, it’s going to be a little bette