Maryland’s Ninth Realm has the scales of judgement tipped in their favor from the outset. First, Jerry “Wyrmwalk” Hionis’ stunning cover art is impossible to ignore, resembling a version of Dissection’s Storm of the Light’s Bane turned up to eleven. Then there’s the band’s origin story. Drummer Joey Burke and guitarist Liam McMahon first met in a medieval history class at the University of Maryland, both sporting metal shirts. They sat next to each other, became friends, started making music, and voilà, Ninth Realm was born. Their debut, A Fate Unbroken (2022), introduced the scene to the quintet’s aggressive mix of styles and traditions, until our friends at Transcending Obscurity snatched them up for their sophomore release. With the stage now set, Damnation’s Veil arrives, and if the album is half as mighty as the forces that brought it into being, listeners are in for a treat.
Damnation’s Veil thrives on berserker energy, hurling itself forward with barely any controlled momentum while somehow still holding itself together. Ninth Realm play with the reckless abandon of thrash, but channel it with hardcore hostility. Burke once labeled it “…a band for hardcore kids who are into Iron Maiden or Manowar” and honestly, that isn’t too far from the truth. Still, easy comparisons remain elusive. Throughout Damnation’s Veil, the group ventures into Deceased’s rancid death (“All Hail Treachery,” “Damnation’s Veil”), embraces classic heavy metal heroics (“Twilight’s Blade,” “Wyrd of Strideborne”), and dishes out a heavy dose of pit-inducing Power Trip thrash. Guitarists Liam McMahon and Charles House lead the charge with a barrage of galloping riffs and merciless hooks, while Ben Hageage serves as the battlefield herald, his corrosive roars pronouncing judgment upon the fallen as Damnation’s Veil’s eleven tracks pass in a blur of steel and fire. Burke’s performance on songs like “Beyond the Void,” “Wyrd of Strideborne,” and “Cohorts of the Abyss” feels so untethered at times they could be considered sloppy, yet that untamed quality is also part of Ninth Realm’s charm.
Ninth Realm storm battlements, raze villages and leave little standing, blasting through their overpowering blend of metal with unyielding force. The title track is a battering ram of old-school blackened death and thrash that charges forward like an armored destrier, carrying the ferocity of Dissection and hitting with lethal force as its thunderous drums and swarms of buzzing tremolos ignite the sky with dragonfire. “Cohorts of the Abyss” and “Imbued in Hellfire” immediately take off on a thrash-induced frenzy that drags your defenseless body behind the war wagon without remorse, while “Rituals in Thar’amath” taps into the compressed hardcore violence of Nails. Outside atmospheric opener “Valigeth,” Ninth Realm only lower their guard once across the record’s 37 minutes, offering a brief respite with interlude “Orphaned Throne” before the siege engines roar back to life with “Wyrd of Strideborne.”
And it’s here, in Damnation’s Veil’s back half, where classic metal begins to assert itself. Shifting gears, Ninth Realm embrace a more traditional speed philosophy on “Beyond the Void,” “Wyrd of Strideborne,” and “Twilight’s Blade,” pairing epic intros with galloping riffs. The classic metal influences add variety, but they come at the expense of some of the urgency that fuels the record’s strongest material before “Orphaned Throne.” Although the latter portion of Damnation’s Veil never collapses, the songwriting feels less assured and energetic, occasionally stumbling into clunkier passages that lack the conviction of earlier tracks. Aside from the excellent “All Hail Treachery,” few back-half songs reach the same heights as the material before it. The record also largely adheres to a formula that Ninth Realm are clearly adept at executing and while there’s nothing inherently wrong with that approach, the result feels a bit too one-trick at times, leaving me satisfied in the moment without leading to an immediate urge to revisit it.
With Damnation’s Veil, Ninth Realm have crafted an album that seeks to run listeners through with a broadsword before tossing their remains into the nearest moat, and they certainly succeed. Old-school charm permeates Damnation’s Veil, broadening its appeal across the metal spectrum. Although Ninth Realm’s sound breaks little new ground and their reliance on a familiar formula prevents the record from ascending to greater heights, there is nothing wrong with the approach these Marylanders embrace. Armed with energy, charisma, and plenty of attack, Ninth Realm are destined for bigger battles ahead.
Rating: Good
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Transcending Obscurity
Websites: ninthrealm-label.bandcamp.com/album/damnations-veil | instagram.com/ninthrealmmd
Releases Worldwide: August 28th, 2026
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