Review of the Album Phantom Antichrist by German Thrash Metal Band Kreator

Phantom Antichrist is the 2012 studio album by German thrash metal band Kreator and this is one of their most recent albums having been released in 2012 and the style is similar to the albums Enemy of God and Hordes of Chaos. So there is this emphasis on fast, staccato thrash only it sounds more modern than older heavy metal fans are used to hearing.

Songs such as Phantom Antichrist and Death to the World have the basic lyrical themes of the impending destruction of the human race and for some people these lyrics may be too much to take. But for those of us that are used to the approach used by Kreator, they are trying to bring attention to the fact that due to human selfishness, the planet is in danger. It may be too much for some listeners to grasp but even if this album isn't their best it is still true to form German melodic thrash.

“From Flood Into Fire” once again is a song that not only shows that Kreator can be a great musical example in the 2010's but their melody is present and they did not stop this after 2005 which is why I probably prefer them over the band Sodom. The song slows down and then the softness comes in as the vocals are more than respectable as it gets heavy again. The song has the message that even if we are experiencing flood, fires, and other natural disasters, we are in this together if we want to save the planet from demise. These guys can do time changes and make them work out perfectly.

“Mars Mantra” starts off this album and it is just a short instrumental song that might have influenced too many bands to mention here. Phantom Antichrist the title track really isn't too different from what we might have heard from the album Enemy of God. Fast forward 7 years later in 2012 and you get basically the same brand of melodic thrash metal, something that Germans are really skilled in.

Civilization Collapse is a song that stylistically is a mixture of Slayer and modern Kreator just the way that these guys have done it. The only difference is that these vocals are more raspy instead of the harsh style that Tom Araya has used in his career. I don't believe that Kreator is a band that is openly promoting all of these themes in the songs but rather they are trying to get across the message that unless something is done to move past the hatred and division that still exists in various nations of the world, the world as we know it is in danger of being extinct. “The Few, The Proud, The Broken” is a song that lyrically describes what happens when a population marches off to war to kill for a tyrant that is ruling under them.

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Once again though, we have the next song Your Heaven My Hell that lyrically is similar to the song “When Death Takes Its Dominion” however there is a well-constructed acoustic part as Mille uses low and soft vocals in this one. One thing that has been very consistent with Kreator is these time changes that have the songs getting softer and melodic only to get heavier in usual Kreator fashion. Victory Will Come has the usual lyrics of death taking over the world as an apocalyptic scenario is presented here. There is very little if anything to complain about this album at least from a musical and riffs standpoint. If you can get past the doomsday scenario lyrical themes, Phantom Antichrist is an enjoyable listen from these German thrash metal veterans however the album is not as good as 2005's Enemy of God.