01. Evisceration (Intro)
02. Blood Makes The Rain Fall
03. The Weight Of Undying Shame
04. A Vanguard Reforged
05. Inquisition's Wrath
06. Masked Resistance
07. Iron Sultanate
08. The Ascendancy Of Cursed Sons

Do you want something hardcore? Well, it doesn't get much more hardcore than the Temple Guard, who unleash the Citadel In Flames.

Temple Guard is a metallic hardcore/metalcore band formed in Nottingham, England, in 2022. The band operates as a singular entity, with its core members writing and recording the music while choosing to remain anonymous, although their discography utilizes a very large roster of guest collaborators. They have a heavy, gritty, and edgy metallic hardcore style largely influenced by the 90s metalcore scene, particularly bands such as Arkangel, Morning Again, All Out War and xRepentancex. They generally focus on building apocalyptic soundscapes through their heavy, hard-hitting music with lyrical themes involving environmental collapse, corporate greed, and animal liberation. The band released their full-length debut Spear Of The Revenant in 2022, a tight, punishing and dynamic concept album that combined metallic hardcore and metalcore with crossover thrash and death metal influences, and a strong environmental theme focusing on the inevitable climate apocalypse.

The band certainly made a lasting impression on their debut, setting a high benchmark for the modern hardcore scene, however, this time they return even heavier, more brutal, and with more dynamic compositions on their sophomore album Citadel In Flames. This album further builds on the concept of the debut, centering its theme on apocalyptic uprising, militant liberation, and societal reckoning, and purifying the Earth from religious hypocrisy and corporate corruption.

The album Is a short 25-minute powerhouse that brings a combination of 90s metalcore, metallic hardcore, hardcore punk, crossover thrash, and elements of death metal with an unrelenting barrage of crushing chugs and devastating breakdowns designed to smash down granite walls, and heavy, punch-in-the-face, sharp metallic riffs with irresistible grooves, all driven by relentless tempos that shift suddenly from moderate to rapid, and ever-changing ferocious rhythms. The vocals are diverse and amongst the most savage and aggressive on the scene right now, from growling like a savage bloodthirsty creature to shouting like an uncontrollable deranged lunatic high on revenge, whilst distorted cinematic narrations and occasional ritualistic chants are present during the slower atmospheric sections. The production is masterful, creating a raw, visceral, and densely suffocating wall of sound whilst still managing to stay crisp and sharp, containing enough clarity to hear each element shine through the mix.

The theme behind Citadel In Flames hits really hard, but not nearly as hard as the music itself. Spear Of The Revenant hits like a sledgehammer to the skull, but Citadel In Flames hits like a god damn wrecking ball smashing through a concrete wall, and due to its short runtime it's over before you even know what's exactly hit you. It's brutal and ferocious, sure, but there's a substantial amount of groove that makes it impossible not to headbanging to, and this also makes hitting that replay button more than irresistible, and it only gets better with each spin as you uncover something new amidst the unrelenting chaos.

Temple Guard are still fresh on the scene with only two albums to their name, but boy have they already made an impression. Hardcore punk and metalcore bands have come a long way since the 90s; music has gotten bolder, evolving in aggression, heaviness, and brutality, and so too has the world we live in, in many ways turning darker, feeling like the economic and environmental apocalypse is nigh approaching. Temple Guard are pretty much leading the pack in regards to capturing that feeling right now, and Citadel In Flames is a prime example of how music and the world surrounding it has changed.

Performance:	9
Songwriting:	7
Originality:	7
Production:	9