January 2026 - Feature Release - The Horde

Karl
Karl
The Guardians The Horde The North
First Post January 01, 2026 08:57 PM
Post #25166

Wishing you a happy new year, gentlemen! And let's open 2026's The Horde features with this later-era disc from our beloved Bolt Thrower - 1998's "Mercenary". Even though the record tends to attract some understandable criticism from dedicated fans for its relative simplicity in comparison with the classic material from "War Master" & "The IVth Crusade", personally, I still find time to revisit quite regularly, and find the tracklist very solid overall. So, fire up the excellent opener, "Zeroed" and let's begin the year with a bang - high volume is strongly recommended for this one!

https://metal.academy/releases/833


Vinny
Vinny
The Fallen The Horde The North The Pit
January 01, 2026 09:49 PM
Post #25171

I think it is definitely time to give my 3 star rating a review.  Feels like a while since I heard this album, in fact not span any Bolt Thrower overall for a while.  As if I need an excuse, but I will take it anyways.

Daniel
Daniel
The Fallen The Horde The North The Pit
January 01, 2026 09:53 PM
Post #25173

"Mercenary" suffered a bit from coming straight after two genuine classics in "The IVth Crusade" & "...For Victory" but it's still a very solid death metal release in my opinion.

Sonny
Sonny
The Fallen The Horde The North The Pit
January 01, 2026 09:55 PM
Post #25174

When I listen to Bolt Thrower I tend to stick with what I own, so "Realm of Chaos" and "War Master" mostly, but I really like the band and don't think they have made a bad album, so I will definitely try to get to this one sometime this month.