Heavily influenced by Hate Eternal, these Italians deliver a debut album full of blast beats, tempo changes and impressive guitar work. They started out as a death metal cover band so they have studied the genre well before writing their own material. Maybe a little too well because Hour Of Penance haven’t found their own sound and style yet. Technically and sound wise they are absolutely spot on but the lack of originality is a pity.

When the band doesn’t sound like Hate Eternal there’s always another band that comes to mind. “From Hate To Suffering” for instance is clearly influenced by Nile. But, as it’s is a debut album it puts Hour Of Penance on the map and many death metal head will thoroughly enjoy this record.