Tribulation – Hamartia

Releasedate: 07 April 2023
Label: Century Media

Quite a lot has happened in the Tribulation camp since the release of the latest full-length “Where the Gloom Becomes Sound” (2021). Jonathan Hultén, the key member of the band, decided to part ways with Tribulation to focus on his solo career (which you need to check out by the way!). Another known name in the scene, Joseph Tholl, replaced him as the new guitarist where he will also be involved as composer and co-songwriter. So the latest EP “Hamartia” is quite a special one as it introduces Joseph Tholl to the listeners.

As a huge Tribulation fan, I was a bit curious to see how the band’s sound was going to be. Were we going to expect big changes or was “Hamartia” going to bring some refreshment and excitement? Luckily, the latter was the case! “Hamartia” delivers us four songs, with the last one being a beautiful Blue Öyster Cult cover. The core of the band’s sound is still there: the gloomy and dark atmosphere as well as the harsh vocals accompanied by the typical Tribulation riffs and melodies we are used to. We see Tribulation focusing more on the guitar riffs and solos rather than keyboard melodies in this EP. A great example of this is “Hemoclysm”, where the guitar solos are dominating. This brings a more straightforward and raw approach.

One last highlight is definitely the BÖC cover “Vengeance (The Pact)”. Tribulation did a fantastic job interpreting this song, showing their occult rock side! It was also refreshing to hear the clean vocals in this one.

“Hamartia” is definitely an exciting EP and kind-of a great introduction for the new Tribulation era. Definitely recommended to the fans but also lovers of this genre. Let’s wait and see what fantastic tunes the band will have for us in the future.

Line up:

• Johannes Andersson – vocals/bass
• Adam Zaars – guitars
• Joseph Tholl – guitars
• Oscar Leander – drums

Tracklist

1. Hamartia
2. Axis Mundi
3. Hemocylsm
4. Vengeance (The Pact)

Links:

Facebook