There is a distinctly unique and gross vibe to the style of black-death metal that Autokrator is going for. This is not the most polished sound wise but I do not believe it is meant to be.  The first track makes me feel as though I am being sucked into some sort of vortex of intense pain and suffering. For clocking in at over six minutes there is a lot to digest. “Le Sang Impur” fades in gross bass feedback that fades in and creates a feel of dread right away.  Enter in some cymbal chokes and drum fills into some strong blasting again from Paradis.  Having not heard there first album I get the feeling that Paradis’s percussion adds another layer to Autokrator’s sound. David Bailey’s vocals are blend in quite well with all of the blistering speed and layered ambience going on.

The third track, “Interlude” sounds like a movie sample of some sort as the intro.  Interesting that they have a track called interlude in the middle of the record.  The title track, “Hammer of Heretics” opens up with more intense drum work and builds quite nicely into a cool groove section.  I must say I enjoy how the bass fuzz works with all of the other components going on. “Inquisito-Denounciatio_Exceptio” wraps up the album the record with a cool tribal sounding mid pacing riffs and drum fills.

Autokrator definitely make their presence felt with Hammer of Heretics.  The definitely blend a unique mix of black death metal in having huge long song arrangements with faster sections mixed up within.  I would definitely recommend this for fans of Incantation, Immolation, or even Ulcerate at times.  This is not cleanest record by any means.  I believe that is intended.  If you are into gross multi-faceted black death give this a go.

After some unsettling sounds of watery torture, their patented wall of sound hits at full force. But, something is a little different this time around. It sounds a bit more human, as if the machines that created the last album have begun to emulate their extinct creators. The shift isn’t as drastic as the one that Godflesh made on Hymns, but it’s noticeable, and aided by the production. It sounds as if a green slime has formed on all of the machinery in their abandoned factory since the first album. This is neither good nor bad, just different. However, it definitely is a positive to hear more variety within and between the songs. The pinnacle of their efforts is “Chapter VII” as it builds from a throbbing, stomping dirge to warp-speed grinding with moments of stop/start bursts and distant ambience. The only downside with the increased variety is the inclusion of a few ambient/industrial tracks that do little more than offer some respite from their usual onslaught.

The theme this time is totalitarianism. Seemingly in the spirit of that political system, three band members have been eliminated, leaving just Loïc.F and vocalist David Bailey. So, no more dual vocalists, but David Bailey does more than a fine enough job by himself with his commanding vocals sounding like David Vincent channeled through a Fallout 4 sentry bot. No one is credited for drums, so I can only assume that they were programmed, which is kind of ironic considering the more natural feel of the album. If they really weren’t performed by a human, Loïc.F did a damn good job making them sound like they were.

If you’re someone who needs riffs and memorability in their metal, you should probably still steer clear of these guys because, even with the changes that they’ve made, there’s still not really any of those things here. But, if you dwell in metal’s most extreme fringes, this is your new authority. Submit!

Autokrator was originally intended to be a new album from N.K.V.D. — another noteworthy industrial black metal project — but it was deemed too great of a departure, and I agree. Autokrator shares a similar martial tone at times, but not much else. Despite this new project’s moniker meaning “one who rules by himself,” lone N.K.V.D. member, Loïc.F, has assembled an international council to provide vocals, drums, and samples for this monstrous new direction.

The approach taken by Autokrator is actually a return to one of industrial’s original tenets: deconstruction. All of the basic elements of death metal are here, but they’ve been pulverized and amplified. It might be best to listen to the album with the same mindset you would have for an ambient, noise, or power electronics recording. Not only are there no discernible riffs, but you also can barely make out any chords. The guitars, which could very well be bass guitar, form an unbelievably massive, throbbing wall of sound. Drums exist in varying tempos from mid-paced marches to hyper-fast blasts, but those guitars don’t seem to care as they rumble and vibrate along with no regard to anyone or anything. Everything sounds like it was recorded in an old, abandoned factory with the vicious, inhuman growls of the two vocalists echoing through abandoned corridors, drums hammering on rusted steel, and guitars being played through amps built from the old machinery as they spew broken fragments of themselves. It’s one of the most merciless things you’re ever going to hear.

The overall sound isn’t too dissimilar from Ævangelist, but without their dark ambient undercurrent. Attempting to layer any more sounds would be futile here — like trying to enjoy classical next to a shuttle launch. There are a few moments of pure ambience, such as the closing moments of “Act 2 – Exsuperator” and “Act 6 – Sit divus, modo non vivus” that resemble Desiderii Marginis, but those are soon blasted away by the rockets. Most of the tracks follow the same formula with the exception of “Act 4 – Autokrator” and closer “Act 8 – Optimus princeps,” which offer some respite with some slightly less booming textures. They’re nice curiosities, but the supreme heaviness of rest of the album is the main attraction because, let’s be honest, we’re here to see liftoff.

Lyrically, each track focuses on the exploits of a different Roman emperor (or emperor’s wife, in the case of “Act 7 – Imperial Whore”). This seems at odds with the apocalyptic atmosphere of the music, but it’s certainly not off-putting by any means. It’s not like they’re harping on about how “radikul” they are. My biggest criticism might be too subjective, but I have to bring it up. Fade outs are a pet peeve of mine, and most of the tracks here close with them. It’s not quite as bad when they blend into some ambience, but for the ones that don’t, it just feels anticlimactic. Although, once the next track explodes, I quickly forget all about it.

Self-released digitally in early March, Autokrator was quickly picked up by Iron Bonehead for a vinyl release. I hope this proves to be a lasting partnership, and that Loïc.F continues to create more twisted sounds with both Autokrator and N.K.V.D. I can envision the two projects evolving in different but equally interesting directions, and helping to mend industrial metal’s reputation in the process.