| Gods of Violence | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 27 January 2017 | |||
| Recorded | 2016 | |||
| Genre | Thrash metal | |||
| Length | 51:43 | |||
| Label | Nuclear Blast | |||
| Producer | Jens Bogren | |||
| Kreator chronology | ||||
| ||||
Gods of Violence is the fourteenth studio album by German thrash metal band Kreator, released on 27 January 2017. [1] [2] This is Kreator's final studio album with bassist Christian "Speesy" Giesler before his departure from the band in 2019. [3]
It was the band's first studio album in almost five years since 2012's Phantom Antichrist , marking the longest gap between two studio albums, until Hate Über Alles broke this record in 2022. A music video for the album's title track was released on 18 November 2016. [4] Special editions of the album were released with a bonus Blu-ray/DVD of Kreator's performance at Wacken 2014.
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 73/100 [5] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| All About the Rock [6] | 10/10 |
| AllMusic [7] |   |
| Blabbermouth.net [8] | 8/10 |
| Metal Injection [9] | 9.5/10 |
| Pitchfork [10] | 6.2/10 |
| Terrorizer | 8.5/10 [11] |
Gods of Violence received positive reviews upon its release. Writing for All About the Rock, Fraser Wilson said: "With this record, Kreator have created a slab of truly eviscerating aural perfection. Thrash may have been born in San Francisco's Bay Area, but it was perfected in Essen." [6]
Gods of Violence debuted at number one on the German charts, making it Kreator's first number one debut in their 32-year recording career. [12] The album won a 2017 Metal Storm Award for Best Thrash Metal Album. [13]
All lyrics are written by Mille Petrozza except where noted; all music is composed by Kreator
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Apocalypticon" (instrumental) | 1:06 | |
| 2. | "World War Now" | 4:28 | |
| 3. | "Satan Is Real" | Petrozza, Jäger | 4:38 |
| 4. | "Totalitarian Terror" | 4:45 | |
| 5. | "Gods of Violence" | 5:51 | |
| 6. | "Army of Storms" | 5:09 | |
| 7. | "Hail to the Hordes" | 4:02 | |
| 8. | "Lion with Eagle Wings" | 5:22 | |
| 9. | "Fallen Brother" | Petrozza, Jäger | 4:37 |
| 10. | "Side by Side" | 4:19 | |
| 11. | "Death Becomes My Light" | 7:26 | |
| Total length: | 51:43 | ||
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Earth Under the Sword" | 3:29 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mars Mantra" | 1:19 |
| 2. | "Phantom Antichrist" | 4:38 |
| 3. | "From Flood into Fire" | 6:33 |
| 4. | "Warcurse" | 6:27 |
| 5. | "Endless Pain" | 3:25 |
| 6. | "Pleasure to Kill" | 4:12 |
| 7. | "Hordes of Chaos" | 5:42 |
| 8. | "Phobia" | 5:15 |
| 9. | "Enemy of God" | 6:02 |
| 10. | "Civilization Collapse" | 4:10 |
| 11. | "The Patriarch" | 0:52 |
| 12. | "Violent Revolution" | 6:54 |
| 13. | "United in Hate" | 8:08 |
| 14. | "Flag of Hate/Tormentor" | 7:19 |
| Total length: | 70:56 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "World War Now" (demo) | 4:19 |
| 2. | "Satan Is Real" (demo) | 4:24 |
| 3. | "Gods of Violence" (demo) | 6:16 |
| 4. | "Lion with Eagle Wings" (demo) | 5:56 |
| 5. | "Death Becomes My Light" (demo) | 7:03 |
| Total length: | 27:58 | |
Writing, performance and production credits are adapted from the album liner notes. [14]
|
|
| Chart (2017) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA) [15] | 30 |
| Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [16] | 4 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [17] | 20 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [18] | 46 |
| Canadian Albums (Billboard) [19] | 90 |
| Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI) [20] | 7 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [21] | 58 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [22] | 7 |
| French Albums (SNEP) [23] | 59 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [24] | 1 |
| Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ) [25] | 5 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) [26] | 55 |
| Polish Albums (ZPAV) [27] | 21 |
| Portuguese Albums (AFP) [28] | 33 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC) [29] | 37 |
| Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) [30] | 28 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [31] | 19 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [32] | 13 |
| UK Albums (OCC) [33] | 72 |
| US Billboard 200 [34] | 118 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard) [35] | 8 |
| US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard) [36] | 6 |
| US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) [37] | 19 |
Kreator is a German thrash metal band from Essen, formed in 1982. Their current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Miland "Mille" Petrozza, drummer Jürgen "Ventor" Reil, lead guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö, and bassist Frédéric Leclercq. The band's lineup has changed multiple times over its 42-year career, most noticeably with their bassists and lead guitarists. Petrozza and Reil are the only two original members left in Kreator, although the latter took a break from the band from 1994 to 1996. Yli-Sirniö has been the lead guitarist of Kreator since 2001, while Leclercq joined in 2019 as the replacement of Christian "Speesy" Giesler, who had been a member of the band since 1994.
Extreme Aggression is the fourth studio album by German thrash metal band Kreator released in 1989. While the band had already gained a sizeable following in the US due to their 1988 tour with the crossover thrash band D.R.I., this album introduced many American fans to Kreator, primarily through heavy rotation of the "Betrayer" music video on MTV's Headbangers Ball, which was partly shot at the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. The beginning of the song "Love Us or Hate Us" was used in an early 1990s promo ad by the Los Angeles radio station KNAC. This was their first album issued in the US by Epic Records. The album was also available on picture disc vinyl.
The following is the complete discography of the German thrash metal band Kreator.
Dark Passion Play is the sixth studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. It was released on 26 September 2007 by Spinefarm Records in Finland, 28 September by Nuclear Blast in Europe and 2 October 2007 by Roadrunner Records in the US. It is the first album without original vocalist Tarja Turunen, who was dismissed in 2005, as well as the first album involving future member Troy Donockley on uilleann pipes and tin whistle. It is the first of only two albums with vocalist Anette Olzon, who was eventually dismissed in 2012 after the release of the band's subsequent album, Imaginaerum. Tuomas Holopainen has referred to this album as the "album that saved his life".
The Formation of Damnation is the tenth studio album by American thrash metal band Testament, released on April 29, 2008. It was Testament's first album since 2001's First Strike Still Deadly and their first of new material since 1999's The Gathering. It was also Testament's first release with original guitarist Alex Skolnick since 1992's The Ritual and bassist Greg Christian since 1994's Low, as well as the band's only studio album recorded with drummer Paul Bostaph, who joined Testament in 1993 but became a full-time member in 2007 before leaving the band four years later.
Hordes of Chaos is the twelfth studio album by German thrash metal band Kreator, released in 2009.
Beyond Hell/Above Heaven is the fourth studio album by Danish rock band Volbeat. The album was released on 10 September 2010 on EMI in Denmark, on Vertigo in the rest of Europe, and on Republic in the United States.
Dark Roots of Earth is the eleventh studio album by American thrash metal band Testament. It was released on July 27, 2012, in Europe, and four days later in North America by independent German record label Nuclear Blast Records. The album is available in three configurations, CD, CD/DVD and vinyl, with the latter two versions including four bonus tracks. The album was produced by Andy Sneap, who mixed and engineered the band's previous three studio releases, The Gathering (1999), First Strike Still Deadly (2001), and The Formation of Damnation (2008). The album artwork was created by Eliran Kantor. A music video was made for the track "Native Blood". Dark Roots of Earth entered the Billboard 200 at number 12, Testament's highest position ever.
Phantom Antichrist is the 13th studio album by German thrash metal band Kreator, released through Nuclear Blast on 1 June 2012.
The Satanist is the tenth studio album by Polish extreme metal band Behemoth. The album was announced on 31 May 2013 and released on 3 February 2014, through Nuclear Blast and on 4 February in Poland via Metal Blade Records and Mystic Production, respectively. Release was preceded by digital download single "Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel" and 12" EP under the same title released on 4 December 2013.
Immortalized is the sixth studio album by American heavy metal band Disturbed. The album was released on August 21, 2015, by Reprise Records, and is Disturbed's first studio album since Asylum (2010), marking the longest gap between two studio albums in their career.
For All Kings is the eleventh studio album by American heavy metal band Anthrax, released on February 26, 2016. It is the band's first studio album to feature Jon Donais on lead guitar, replacing Rob Caggiano. The album artwork was designed by Alex Ross.
The Evil Divide is the eighth studio album by the American thrash metal band Death Angel, released on May 27, 2016. This album marked the first time since Act III (1990) that Death Angel had not made any personnel changes in three consecutive studio albums, and their third collaboration with longtime producer Jason Suecof.
Brotherhood of the Snake is the twelfth studio album by American thrash metal band Testament, released on October 28, 2016. It is the band's first studio recording with bassist Steve Di Giorgio since First Strike Still Deadly (2001). Brotherhood of the Snake also marks Testament's fifth collaboration with Andy Sneap, who had mixed and engineered all of their albums since The Gathering (1999) and produced Dark Roots of Earth (2012). The album debuted at number twenty on the Billboard 200 chart, making it Testament's second-highest-charting album in the US, behind Dark Roots of Earth, which peaked at number twelve four years earlier.
The Grinding Wheel is the 18th studio album by American thrash metal band Overkill, released on February 10, 2017. It is the last Overkill album with drummer Ron Lipnicki, who left the band shortly after its release and was replaced by Jason Bittner for the album's tour and its follow-up The Wings of War (2019).
Titans of Creation is the thirteenth studio album by American thrash metal band Testament, released on April 3, 2020. This album marked the first time since The Ritual (1992) that the band had recorded more than one album with the same lineup, though it would turn out to be their last to feature drummer Gene Hoglan, who left Testament for the second time in January 2022. Titans of Creation is also the band's first album to be co-produced by Juan Urteaga, who previously worked with Testament's two studio albums Dark Roots of Earth (2012) and Brotherhood of the Snake (2016).
Violence Unimagined is the fifteenth studio album by American death metal band Cannibal Corpse, released on April 16, 2021. It is the band's first album in nearly four years since Red Before Black (2017), the longest gap between two records in Cannibal Corpse's career, and the first studio album to feature producer Erik Rutan on lead guitar, replacing Pat O'Brien in February 2021 after nearly two years of filling in for him on tour.
Rock Believer is the nineteenth studio album by German rock band Scorpions, released on 22 February 2022 in the United Kingdom and 25 February elsewhere. This is the band's first studio album with drummer Mikkey Dee, who replaced James Kottak in 2016, and their first studio album in seven years since Return to Forever (2015), making it their longest gap between studio albums.
Hate Über Alles is the fifteenth studio album by German thrash metal band Kreator, which was released on 10 June 2022 through Nuclear Blast. Produced by Arthur Rizk, it is the band's first studio album since Gods of Violence (2017), the longest gap between studio albums in their career, and the first to feature bassist Frédéric Leclercq, who replaced Christian "Speesy" Giesler in 2019.
Scorched is the twentieth studio album by American thrash metal band Overkill, released on April 14, 2023. It is the band's first studio album in four years, following The Wings of War (2019), the longest gap between studio albums for the band.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)