IIIrd Sovereign – Destined To Suffer

IIIrd Sovereign are an extreme death metal band from Aizwal and impressed many avid metal followers with their EP “Horrified Visions”. The release of their new album Destined To Suffer just confirms their status as one of India’s best death metal bands.

Their line-up consists of

Vedant - Vocals
Benjamin - Guitar
Reuben - Drum
Jonah - Bass

Track 1 : Pathetic Ignorance ( 3:12 )Probably my favourite track of the album!The variations in Vedants vocals is quite obvious. The guitar riffing is catchy, the muting and machine gun riffs are executed at the precise time! Only downside for staunch followers of this genre is that it has a rockish heavy metal feel to it instead of the traditional death metal feel that IIIrd Sovereign are known for. So maybe hardcore death metal followers wouldnt appreciate this song. But I still love this track !

Track 2 : Necrophobia ( 2:50 )This one has an element of thrash. Reubens drumming takes the cake in this track. The tempo of the song is maintained by him hitting the double bass at the right time.

Track 3 : Destined To Suffer ( 3.20 )One would imagine the album titled song to be special and unique, which would in turn define the album. However the intro to this song sounds pretty similar to the last track  Necrophobia. At times the track breaks down and feels a little monotonous. An average song, nothing to rave about ! Note : 13 questions where asked in the lyrics to which I had no answers.

Track 4 : Dying Sun ( 3.17 )This track is good until 1 min 35 secs. The track completely drifts away. Next song please ! There should have been a guitar solo at the mid before drifting away. Maybe then the song would have sounded better. Note : 16 questions ! The lyrics are similar to the previous track.

Track 5 : Gathering Of Lies ( 2.55 ) This track makes up for the last one ! The riffing in this track is catchy and I am not sure if the guitarists are using a drop-D tuning but the riffing sounds crisp and at times it has a Cannibal Corpse feel to it ! This track also has the best lyrics in the entire album !

Track 6 : Life Of Mortal ( 2.53 )This track doesnt stand out much. Mostly due to the fact that the song sounds like something I have heard before. When I listen to a track it should sound a little different and new. This song had a big sense of Deja Vu for me. The riffing and thrash drumming sound very common. Again I feel the need for a solo in this track. That is probably what separates the best from the rest.

Track 7 : Victimized ( 2.36 )This song has sounds different to the rest of the songs of this album. Also the use of different guitar techniques is a lesson for people looking to cover songs. As this song is a lesson in pinch harmonics! These guys sure know their pinch. However Im not sure if the pinch executed at 1min19sec and at 1min26secs might have come out properly or it was pure intentional. Either way it sounds good. But thats a very minor point. Just so that I could pick on something! 

Track 8 : Suicidal Corpse ( 2.29 )The intro to this track packs the punch! At 1 min 14 secs it seems as if they have taken a leaf out of Cannibal Corpse’ - Hammer Smashed Face. That aside this track can compete with the best in the business! Probably the highlight of the album. If one does not have patience to listen to the whole album, then listen to this song before you do anything further.

Track 9 : Funeral Rites ( 2.57 )Now after listening to all the tracks in this album this just sounds like any other track. My only complaint with this album is that there is not much variations in the tracks. Even though all the tracks are brutal, at times they sound similar. Thats exactly the problem with this track.   


A suggestion to IIIrd Sovereign would be to include guitar solo’s in some of their songs . I dont think theres any problem with the guitar riffing but a solo here and there changes the song completely and it enhances the whole audio experience!    

On a scale from 1 to 10, I would rate this album 7.

The positive aspect of this album is that IIIrd Sovereign have retained their genre completely without bargaining with their material. The only problem with this album is that it sounds a bit monotonous.

If you need a reason to support the Indian metal scene, I would suggest you listen to this album! It should change your views!

I would advise all metal-heads to buy this album!