Kommand managed to step aside from the U.S. underground. The second album takes the classic elements of old-school death metal. Slow creepy death-doom-like riffs kick off in the album’s opener ‘Final Virus’. Despite the short length of twenty-six minutes, the guitar churns out thick cavernous riffs while the creepy guttural growls swell with the relentless double bass. Although I wish there were more of than just these six tracks on the album. Built on a massive wall of sound generating an atmosphere of malignancy, Kommand flawlessly bludgeons an oppressive heaviness.

Riffs on the album are churned out to match the relentless tone of the skull-grinding drums, and the turbulent tides of the double bass  show how the band can play brutally slow and fast. ‘Chimera Soldiers’ delivers a cavernous nihilism, demonstrating the potency of the drum’s artillery and unleashing the ultimate old-school brutality. Destructive blast beats simply refueling a merciless war machine that never runs out of steam. At its fundamental scale the guttural growls are the icing on the cake.

While the tempos are ponderous, the pounding drum’s emphasis is on slower-paced beats and its gut-churning bass lines drag the slower tempos on ‘Global Death’, the whole focus lies through the dense cavernous growls. Aptly named ‘Death Age’ covers a range of beats. The strength of the band is knowing when to shift from the steamrolling tempos to the brutal passages of the drums. In all its menacing, earth-shattering brutality the drumming provides the most powerful element to the dark, formidable atmosphere. Take, for example, the fourth track ‘Polar Holdout’ which emphasizes the massive impact of the blast beats that collide in with rampaging riffs.

The guitars are equipped with a pungent slab of tremolos, so powerful yet fast and brutal. Once the rapid drum beats kick in an oppressive tone, the creepy growls then become ridden with a sickening aura. The production of the album is beefy, particularly in the guitar department. The drums are powerful and thrust into your face. Among the faster tracks is ‘Fleeing Western Territories’ which delivers a mammoth performance where the drums set an erupting pace and the blast beats on this track remain the most striking feature.

There is an unmistakable resemblance to Bolt Thrower, especially when the typhoon riffs and tempos are applied. This is to say that the second full-length album is devoid of any gimmicks or bullshit. Kommand managed to curate some of their best material, thus establishing themselves in the cavernous core realms of old-school death metal. The solos on the album are often used, but they are blazingly smitten like the wrath of the gods. ‘Death Age’ forges a unique trademark sound while invoking the glorious spirit of rotten death metal and even in the well-crafted riffs the guitars insert some infectious grooves and the unease infusion of the tremolos offers countless of heaviness and brutality.

The album’s closure ‘Collapse Metropolis’ begins with heavy-hitting riffs and hammering drums in equal measure, focusing on double bass and blast beats. The apocalyptic war themes permeate throughout the track with the guitars incorporating elements of death/doom riffs, painting somber images of death and destruction. The whole formula is somewhat repeated by the end of the track when the drumming again becomes the centerpiece.

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