The second full-length studio album by Suicidal Angels is an interesting one at that. For bands unfamiliar with this band, Sanctify The Darkness will come as a bit of a surprise, both welcome and awkward. While there really isn't anything negative about the release, the album isn't very original, bringing on a very traditional early nineties Thrash in the vain of acts like Slayer without really being considered worship of any sort of band of the genre, as well as of that time, due to one main difference that sets this band apart from many others, and where the awkward feeling comes in. Luckily, this feeling is not one of discomfort, but a questionable feeling of the vocals sounding so different and sometimes bland, but working so well with album overall.
As stated, much of the music on Sanctify the Darkness really isn't the most original, and as a matter of fact sounds a bit hollow compared to many bands out there, which is shocking considering that there actually are two guitarists involved. This isn't to say that the hollow guitars ruin the sound of the album. The problem here is that there seems to be a lack of a distortion and they sound rather clear with little difference between lead and rhythm sometimes, such as during "Apokathilosis", which through most of the song sounds like there's only one guitar while the second guitar seems to work with the bass more then aid filling the gaps with the lead guitar due to how far back in the mix it is. However, the guitar solo sounds great in this song and makes that section sound full. This also winds up being the case during "...Lies", which is a much faster track in comparison leading to less gaps between the chords and causing the music to really just sound complete.
Other then that, the vocals are a little strange, but ultimately work well with the sound of the album. The vocal approach here is not to utilize a rough, rhaspy vocal style, or even shouting. While the vocals on here do still come off a bit rough, the main thing about them is that they are much lower, almost as if you're listening to the vocalist speaking in a hushed tone, but with a little bit of an edge and some force behind them. This adds a unique layer to the music, and brings the sound into a rather dark atmosphere that could be argued as feeling a bit like the band is drawing on Black Metal influences. Either way, the vocals here somehow work well throughout the album, shining nicely on "The Pestilance of Saints" and "Dark Abyss (Your Fate is Colored Black)". The only problem is that after a while these vocals can become a little stale as there's no real outstanding vocal range, and sometimes a lack of emphasis. "...Lies", however, finds the band putting on one of the best performances of the album, with great guitars and drumming, fantastic solos, and the vocals often have a little more of a push behind them that some tracks seem to be missing.
That's about all there is to say about Sanctify the Darkness, really. There's plenty of great tracks on here, like "Bloodthirsty", "No More than Illusion", "Beyond the Laws of Church", and the others already mentioned in this review. Even the track "Child Molester" that concludes the album in a rather sick and twisted sort of way is a song that. A little more emphasis on the vocals would have been nice, as well as a better mixing of the guitars, maybe a heavier distortion too could have really worked in the favor of this album, but in a sense those musical aspects only help to build a raw quality that is enhanced by the lower rough vocal approach to create an atmosphere to this album all it's own. While this isn't album of the year material, Suicidal Angel's second full-length offering does have plenty of replay value, and is an album you simply must hear, not only to comprehend this review properly, but because of how different it is compared to many of the Thrash acts out there now.
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