By the Light of Their Destruction

“There’s so much music out there that it’s easy for good bands to get lost in the shuffle. Enter Ares Kingdom. Formed in 1996 by guitarist Chuck Keller and drummer Mike Miller shortly before the breakup of their famed blackened death metal band Order From Chaos, the Kansas City group soon added vocalist and bassist Alex Blume (Blasphemic Cruelty) to their ranks to become the ultimate death-thrash power trio. Their 2006 debut Return to Dust and 2010’s Incendiary are two of my favorite albums the genre has ever produced, with the latter still reigning as one of my favorite records of this decade. The band’s frantic and melodic riffing, dynamic songwriting, and empowering lyrics about warfare and history have always reminded me of a death-ier Destroyer 666, which is about the highest compliment that can be given by a slobbering D666 fanboy like myself.” Gods of War (metal).