Enforcer are a band who’ve been around since the early 2000s but sound like they’ve been going a lot longer. They’re very much classic metal with an edge of speed. Despite being a 2019 album, Zenith would not have sounded out of place in 1989.
This is either a strength or a weakness depending on your tastes. While there’s no denying that there are some good songs on here, there’s always the risk of a band being labelled formulaic or generic if they don’t try something new. Indeed, it took me up until the full on flurry of “Searching For You”‘s intro to really get into the album. It’s the first piece at a truly breakneck pace, and the song as a whole really only slows down for the chorus. New recruit Jonathan Nordwall gets to show off his shredding skills to good effect, too.
Ballad “Regrets” just didn’t work for me, though. It just seemed a bit empty, and I felt there should be a little more going on. I don’t dislike a good rock ballad, but it just seemed out of place.
Thankfully, the likes of the appropriately belting “Thunder And Hell” and the bombastic “One Thousand Years of Darkness” with its catchy chorus raise the standards again.
Zenith is a mixed bag. Enforcer are definitely not afraid to wear their influences on their sleeves, but I feel they could do with some meatier production and to drop the lighter material. It’s the speedy stuff that works, getting the foot tapping and the head banging. I’m also still trying to decide if overall they’re too cheesy or not cheesy enough!
I’d definitely say this is an album to check out to see if it’s your kind of thing. There’s certainly a lot going on here, it’s just a shame that not all of it’s for me.
Zenith is out on April 26th
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