Band:	Hate
Album:	Bellum Regiis
Style:	Death metal
Release date:	May 02, 2025
A review by:	omne metallum

01. Bellum Regiis
02. Iphigenia
03. The Vanguard
04. A Ghost Of Lost Delight
05. Rite Of Triglav
06. Perun Rising
07. Alfa Inferi, Goddess Of War
08. Prophet Of Arkhen
09. Ageless Harp Of Devilry

If would-be tribute acts don't name themselves 'Mild Indifference', then they're missing a trick.

Hate is a strong word; to name a band after such an emotive word, you should be sure to pack your album with powerful, hard-hitting tracks, or produce music that evokes a response so disdainful, it enables listeners to say their opinion is written on the tin. Well, despite setting you up to believe these Polish blackened death metal peddlers would whip up such fervent responses, 2025's Bellum Regiis doesn't evoke much in the way of a strong response either way, for better or worse.

For those of you who were asleep in Latin class, Bellum Regiis translates roughly to "War With Kings" in English, and while they aren't the only ones to dabble with the Latin language, the majority of the album's themes instead are derived from Greek literature and history, which provides plenty of inspiration to draw upon. Across the album, the band deliver solid tracks that center around tales such as King Agamemnon on "Iphigenia", to "The Vanguard".

Hate do conjure up enjoyable tracks on Bellum Regiis, with the closing "Ageless Harp Of Devilry" seeing their strengths coalesce to make for a powerful, atmospheric listening experience. Led by the powerful growls of ATF Sinner (ah, black metal edginess), Hate may change composition more often than their corpse paint, but their enigmatic leader ensures continuity throughout their career.

Bellum Regiis is a solid-sounding record thanks to the work of producer Sacharczuk, from the subtle little tricks he makes on tracks like "A Ghost Of Lost Delight" (where the guitar is pushed up in the mix to accentuate the climax of the riff so that it hits harder), to the overall balance of the different elements and components that go into the tracks. While it does sound a bit too clean for the blackened elements, it doesn't detract from the overall listening experience.

Where Bellum Regiis falls short, is similar to much of the band's prior output, that being the songwriting. While there are several enjoyable moments and some good tracks, they need more memorable and unique parts to truly elevate and separate themselves from each other. If you can remember how "Iphigenia" went by the time "Prophet Of Arkhen" starts up, then you're doing better than me; sure, I know I liked it, but nothing about it pierced my grey matter as the notes flew off. Feeding into this issue is that, as good a singer as Sinner is, so much blurs into one due to his delivery and quantity; the lack of diversity hinders the experience.

Bellum Regiis is an enjoyable, if flawed, album that still ranks amongst the best efforts to come from Hate.