Carthage - Third Punic War

Greece’s Carthage continue to storm ears with their history lessons of Rome, this time with their EP and third chapter entitled “Third Punic War.” Their last album back in 2021 was a storm of Death Metal influenced heavily by the likes of Hate Eternal and Aborted with a hailstorm of riffs and guttural vocals that scorched ears and left eardrums ringing, but it was a well deserved storm. 2 years later the band lineup is still the same with not much movement; still a duo hammering out some solid Death Metal, only on this EP things have changed a little. “Sicilian Wars” was a bit more like your average Cannibal Corpse album with plenty of fast tracks, here with “Third Punic War” the band seemed to have slowed down a little, opting more for the chunkier, slower riff approach like that of Morbid Angel as evident from the opening ‘Baal Hammon.’ This track still stomps though as one can still hear the Hate Eternal influence in the vocals and drums, with the vocals being more layered in that Erik Rutan growl/ shriek combo than just the one sided growl. The slower parts do break the momentum of the heavier sections, but it is more like a roller coaster ride as the chunky riffs are like the ride building up to the top of the hill and then everything just crashes down with exciting fury.

Faster tracks like ‘Oroscopa’ feature a bit more furious riffing but it is the drums that really carry the music alongside the vocals. This track just rips and Leonidas just goes all out here on the guitar, bass, and drums. Vocalist Thomas Blanc sounds clear and more refined, and while certainly taking the more Aborted approach with his range, still sounds as good as he did when he first started back in 2018, if not better. Other tracks like ‘Tanit’ and ‘Siege of Carthage’ take the slow to mid paced approach, opting for those repetitive churning riffs interspersed with militant drumming (which actually fits the overall Roman war feel of the EP very well). While not as much as a frenzied pit thrasher and less solo driven, these tracks along with the other might be more accessible to newer fans compared to the older stuff which might hit harder. While this EP is short (less than 15 minutes), it is a good interlude for whatever next chapter Carthage delivers. Older fans will enjoy it and new fans will also find this album a great place to start as it really showcases Carthage’s style and emulates less of the bigger names as they continue to come into their own. Hopefully album no. 4 will be another scorcher will more surprises and more moody, slower pieces chock full of groove to 2 step mosh to.

3.5 / 5 STARS