Frozen Soul's 'No Place of Warmth' - Album Review

It feels like time to cover some proper extreme metal again. A couple of years ago I made more of an effort to cover death metal on this blog, as it had rarely featured here up to that point, but that effort has dropped off more in recent times. I do like death metal, but it makes up quite a small portion of my overall listening habits - and it remains a genre that I am just not all that knowledgeable about outside of the big names. I am casually familiar with a lot of death metal bands, and my knowledge rarely moves beyond such - but there are times where I end up making a bit more of an effort and I start to expand my death metal collection. Today's band is one such example - and I discovered them earlier this year when I saw them live. That band is the Texas-based five-piece Frozen Soul - an old-school-sounding death metal band that play the sort of chunky, groovy, classic-sounding death metal that I tend to like. I generally like death metal that essentially sounds like a much heavier version of traditional heavy metal or thrash - with the more intricate and chaotic end of the genre often not for me. It was likely this sound which helped Frozen Soul stand out on a seven-band bill that I caught in London earlier this year. The mammoth evening, which kicked off at 4:30pm, was the result of two metal gigs that had been booked in London on the same night joining forces - meaning that all seven bands that were scheduled to appear over the two bills all appeared on the one enlarged bill. This sounds like a bit of a crazy idea, and it made for a long night, but I got the impression that both shows were not selling too well due to the competition - alongside the fact that Deftones were also playing at one of the city's larger venues. The night was topped by Sylosis, and included well-known acts Heaven Shall Burn and The Black Dahlia Murder, but there were a handful of smaller bands that I was not familiar with that played early on in the evening. Following a decent hardcore band, alongside a deathcore band that did nothing whatsoever for me, Frozen Soul came on third and seemed to turn up the heat. It likely helped that there were a few more people in the room by the time they came on, as the early start meant that the venue took a little while to fill up. As such, I was impressed by Frozen Soul's set. I did not really know anything about the band before seeing them live, but their crunchy, largely mid-paced death metal sound was fun and filled the room - and there was a good atmosphere during their set, with some of the evening's first proper mosh pits getting underway. I have since heard 2023's Glacial Domination, the band's second album, a couple of times - but when I saw that they would be releasing a new album later in 2026 I thought it would be suitable to use it to dive in properly. Last month, then, this third album arrived - with No Place of Warmth being Frozen Soul's first album for three years. Unlike the last album, which was co-produced by Trivium's Matt Heafy, No Place of Warmth was produced by Josh Schroeder - who is probably most-known currently for working with deathcore darlings Lorna Shore. This is a very well-produced album, meaning that the riffs feel very heavy - but there remains an organic sound befitting the band's old-school death metal sound. The drums do not sound too processed as they often can on extreme metal albums, whilst there is space in the arrangements to allow the songs to breathe - which is not something that could be said about Schroeder's production jobs for Lorna Shore.

There a couple of quite big-name guest vocalists that appear here, too, so it feels like Frozen Soul are moving up in the world. In truth, they have been on a big label for a while and Heafy's aforementioned involvement was a similar big-name involvement - but it feels like only a matter of time before Frozen Soul become more widely known in the metal world. Those guest vocalists are all utilised early on, too, but only one really stands out. Kicking off with its title track, No Place of Warmth gets off to a strong start. Cold synths shimmer as the song fades into view, creating an unsettling sound, but Frozen Soul are not a keyboard band - and these synths are just utilised as an intro to the riffing that follows. Tolling bells soon give way to the first of the album's riffs, a snaking, mid-paced effort that creates a slow-moving groove early on. Despite being a proper death metal band, there is still melody to be found here. Lead guitarist Chris Bonner lays down some mournful leads during the verses - which see mid-paced chugs backed by some slightly faster double bass drumming from Matt Dennard. The song never feels all that fast despite this drumming, though, with the song largely lumbering along in classic death metal fashion - whilst frontman Chad Green barks the lyrics. He might not have the biggest range vocally, but his deep growls really suit the band's sound - and his tough verse delivery is filled with power. Following a busier guitar solo section later, which is more measured and melodic than shredded, the most prominent guest vocalist in the form of Gerard Way (My Chemical Romance) joins in - adding some black metal-esque rasps to the song. Way had previously shown his extreme metal side on Ibaraki's Rashomon (which I reviewed here) - and he dominates the later parts of this song, either singing alone or with Green. Invoke War then follows a similar sound, continuing a fairly mid-paced sound with something of a chugging stop-start riff early on, which is backed by more double bass drumming. Green bellows the song's title early on, creating something of an early chorus, but later verses feel a bit groovier thanks to a simpler drum arrangement and more varied riffing - with Bonner and fellow guitarist Michael Munday switching things up. This song is a bit more varied pace-wise, too, with some faster sections coming in later on. It never really feels like thrash or truly fast-paced, but there is some more energy that kicks in as the song moves on - with flashier riffing and a bit more of Dennard's fast footwork. Robb Flynn (Forbidden; Vio-lence; Machine Head) appears, after also featuring in my last review here, delivering some gnarly spoken word towards the end of the song - and then duets a little with Green as the song comes to a close. Absolute Zero is a very short song, which opens with some intense drumming - which gives the impression that the song is going to be a fast number. Whilst there are some short blast beat-led sections, much of the song is actually quite lumbering - with the piece a contrast between very slow and much faster riffs. It only lasts for just under a minute, though, so there is little to write home about here.

Dreadnought slows the pace right down, and goes for a very slow-moving and groovy sound - with shout-along chorus vocals and a good mix of somewhat doomy riffs and some old-school death metal mid-paced grooves. There is a stronger bass presence here, too, with Samantha Mobley opening the song with a powerful bass riff - and there are bass-led breaks throughout the song, too. This helps the slow-moving sound to settle in, whilst a brief, shredded guitar solo does add some later energy. The final guest vocalist in the form of Devin Swank (Limbsplitter; Sanguisugabogg; Earthburner) is included here, too, although I am not sure exactly what he brings to the song - perhaps some of the raspier growls that can be heard during parts of the song. The transition to Chaos Will Reign is obvious, as the band immediately start to up the pace - with some faster double-bass drumming kicking in early on, giving the early parts of the song a somewhat thrashier feel. Despite this initial speed, though, the band largely rein in the pace - with the song, on the whole, being another mid-paced number. Old-school death metal generally operates the best at this pace, to allow the grooves of the riffs and the slow-moving vocals to shine - but this is a song which switches up the pace somewhat, with occasional blast beats shaking things up despite the core of the song being slower. That mix of double bass drumming and slow-to-change riffing is another feature of big parts of the song - whilst a later breakdown section feels a bit doomy with some much slower riffing and a bit more of a bass presence. Eyes of Despair immediately feels faster, with a slightly more anthemic riff that has more than a shade of hardcore kicking things off, as Dennard uses various drum breaks and fills to build an early excitement. An opening, shredded, guitar solo is something a bit different for the band, with Bonner laying down some chaotic, fast-paced lead playing early on, and the rest of the song maintains a faster overall pace. This is certainly much more of an energetic piece, with some thrashy riffs and punkier drumming often dominating - whilst the blast beat sections utilised here are a bit longer and feel more impactful as a result. There is a lot more pace and energy throughout this song, then, and Green's vocal melodies feel a little more anthemic at times - building on that early hardcore influence. Ethereal Dreams opens in a similar manner to the album's title track, with some cold synths fading in to set the tone - before some more percussive drumming creates something of a groove, before the band launch into a faster, more chaotic sound that, at times, seems to borrow a little from black metal. The early riffing has a nastier, buzzsaw guitar tone - with some screaming shredded leads backing up this harsher sound. The early moments of this song are a bit different from the rest of the album, then, but when things settle into a more familiar groove the core Frozen Soul sound returns. Despite this, there is a bit more of an intense and harsh sound here. The drumming is generally busier and faster this time, and there is less reliance on fat, groovy riffs - with speed more of a feature. The riffs just feel a little less defined here, which is different from the band's usual sound - which does help this song to stand out from the crowd. Speaking of black metal, there is a section later on which features muffled vocals and some strange riffing which returns to those influences somewhat - before a riff that is much more typical of the band's core sound takes over to bring things to a close.

Skinned by the Wind is another short song, but this one is a little longer than Absolute Zero - and it is largely just the band's core sound distilled down into a snapshot. It is a groovy, mid-paced number with chunky riffing, deep growls, and some double bass drumming - so really there is little to say about it. Deathweaver opens a little more slowly, with a building riff that allows the band to evolve a little beneath it - with some interesting drumming and a few false starts before the song gets going. Overall, the song's intro is quite long, which is rare for the band. It speeds up later on, but the opening feels quite doomy, with some sluggish riffs and even a feature guitar solo section that includes some more melancholic leads. It seems as if the song is going to be more of a doom anthem, then, but once the double bass drums kick in in a big way the song does speed up - and the band's usual mid-paced sound is restored. Some of the verses here feel a little faster than is typical, but there is still plenty of groove here - with the double bass drumming bringing the best out of the groovy guitar patterns. The doomy feel of the song's opening is returned to later on, though, with some slower riffing, backed by a strong bass presence, taking over as Green delivers the lyrics in a slow and menacing way. Frost Forged ups the pace, and feels like a much more intense song from the off. All of the doom trappings from the previous song are stripped away - and those hardcore influences that were heard earlier on in the album return somewhat. The song is not all that anthemic, but the riffing has a little more of a slamming feel at times, with hardcore-esque grooves and more of a focus on vocal melodies. Blast beats are utilised again for speed, and there are some much faster than is typical moments here, but generally the band's typical groovy approach is retained - with a good mix of double bass drumming and simpler grooves to bring the best out of the riffing. There is a lot of groove here as a result, and there are some moments that feel a bit more overtly hooky, more in the sense of how the guitars and drums link up rather than anything that is being delivered vocally. The song is a powerful one, then, and its much heavier closing minute or so really aids this feeling. The album then comes to a close with much more up-tempo Killin' Time (Until It's Time to Kill), a much more anthemic and energetic piece that mixes more of a thrash attitude with a core death metal sound. As such, there are much faster moments here throughout, and pace is a bit more of focus this time. This is the case during the verses in any case, which speed along with more of a carefree attitude, but a more groovy approach does return for the chorus - which is quite the shout-along moment. It may be the album's most overtly hooky chorus, and I can see it really working well live as a crowd shouts along with the main lyrics. This is not a vibe that the band go for too often here, but it works well in my opinion - and there is also another memorable guitar solo with some shredded, yet fairly melodic, leads. Structure-wise, then, this song feels a bit more typical metal with strong verses and a memorable chorus, but the band's core sound is still very much here - and the fists-in-the-air number is a great way to close out the album. Death metal may not always be my thing, but there is a lot to like about Frozen Soul and I think that No Place of Warmth feels like a very well-crafted, memorable, and well-produced album. The songs here generally do stand out, and there is enough variety whilst sticking to core sound which means that no one song really outstays its welcome. I am not convinced that the guests add too much, aside from Way, but this aside the album is likely to be one of death metal's key releases of 2026.

The album was released on 8th May 2026 via Century Media Records. Below is the band's promotional video for No Place of Warmth.