Release Date: January 23rd, 2026
Format: CD/Vinyl/Digital
Genre: Speed/Thrash/Black Metal
Country: Italy
Barbarian hails from
Firenze, Italy, active for over a decade and a half, locked into the
underground with a reputation built on sweat, riffs, and stubbornness. A power
trio with zero interest in trends, they have carved their own lane through
sheer volume of ideas and a deep obsession with metal history, punk abrasion,
and early extreme sounds. Six albums in, they stand as lifers, not tourists.
Barbarian return with
“Reek Of God”, their sixth full length and their first strike for Dying Victims Productions. This album sticks to their
core habits, fast riffs, ugly hooks, and a constant sense of pressure. The
songs are shorter; more packed, and rarely settle into familiar verse patterns.
It comes off restless and overloaded on purpose, like someone dumping a crate
of records on the floor and playing them all at once. The attitude is
confrontational, anti religious, anti comfort, and very much rooted in street
level metal thinking.
Lyrically, the album keeps swinging
at religion and authority, with some sharper moments standing out. “Shit He
Forgives” pulls lines from Crass and keeps the
venom intact, while “Crossburn” flips expectations and makes its stance clear
without clever disguises. References like Ice-T
and punk politics show up as part of the band’s DNA, not as winks for approval.
Barbarian sounds informed, obsessed, and
unfiltered, sometimes to a fault.
“Reek Of God” hits harder on energy;
the flood of riffs and ideas keeps things intense, though not every track
sticks in the memory once the noise clears. This is an album for listeners who
prefer friction over polish and attitude over comfort. Barbarian
remains stubborn, loud, and allergic to compromise, which keeps them interesting
even when the execution stumbles.
Score: 7.5
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