Thy Kingdom Will Burn embarks on 2025 with a third album.
Three years after their previous release, Sami Kujala (guitar/vocals, ex-Wiréns), Lauri Virén (drums, ex-Wiréns), Janne Ruuskanen (bass) and Esa Virén (guitar, ex-Babylonfall, ex-To/Die/For, ex-Wiréns) unveil The Loss and Redemption, still on Scarlet Records.
The band kicks off with Perpetual Void, immersing us in their melancholic blend of Melodic Death Metal, with reassuring piano and intense, mostly saturated vocal parts. The riffs are sometimes infused with Doom/Death, becoming slower on the choruses, but Obscure Existence returns with a more aggressive, yet slightly more playful touch throughout. A keyboard break gives us a brief respite, but the rhythm soon returns to lead us into Martyrs Of Killing Floor and its darker ambience, which tinges the riffs, from the quietest to the angriest. The atmosphere is quite heavy, even in the rage phases, and will remain so until Forever In Dark takes its place to reveal its own nostalgia thanks to heady harmonics and cries filled with sadness despite the virulence of certain passages. Escape From Solitude returns to more epic tones where keyboards create an interesting contrast with the driving base, especially on the final, but the band returns to ominous hues with Suffering Sky, followed by furious harmonics that motivate the singer to adopt a more energetic delivery. A quieter, more fascinating moment appears without warning before the final chorus, and then They Have Come unveils its own rage, adding some welcome backing vocals and airy samples to counterbalance the musicians’ energy. Dreams of Calamity follows with a steady rhythm that changes over the course of the composition, even offering a calm, melodious final to To End Of Times. We feel that the guitar is also more joyful, and it proves this throughout the track by borrowing from Symphonic Metal, then the album closes with Sydänyö, not without presenting motivating riffs and Finnish vocals that add a touch of originality to the track’s beauty.
With The Loss and Redemption, we feel that Thy Kingdom Will Burn is becoming ever more rooted in melancholy, bringing ever more darkness and pessimism to its compositions. The album’s quality remains high, and it doesn’t hesitate to diversify its influences to become ever more interesting.
85/100