It’s been awhile (four years to be exact) since we last heard from Swedish death metal gods, ENTOMBED. By the sound of Serpent Saints, it sounds like band aren’t finished just yet. The title tracks opens with a nice horror movie-like intro and then bursts through the gates with a brutal attack lovingly lifted from MOTORHEAD’s “Iron Fist.” Second track, “Masters of Death,” continues the excellent quality in bruising fashion. There are some sweet black metal vocals that come in as well. The title track from their last release, “When in Sodom,” is a strong centerpiece. “Warfare, Plague, Famine, Death” finishes off the Serpent Saints with plenty of fire before instrumental outro, “The Ten Commandments,” closes it all down. The aforementioned songs would’ve made for a great, solid EP. The remaining songs are not bad but they just don’t measure up in quite the same way. Throughout Serpent Saints you get the feeling that ENTOMBED are feeling renewed after line-up changes and are having a great time. Vocalist LG Petrov sounds great with his famous roar as loud as ever. Alex Hellid continues on as the band’s sole guitarist and fills the position in fine form. The newcomers, bassist Nico Elgstrand and drummer Olle Dahlstedt, do a fine job in continuing the trademark ENTOMBED sound. Surely, this is the band’s best since 2001’s Morning Star. While ENTOMBED will probably never be able to replicate their early landmark albums, death metal veterans will be happy to know that the band is still capable of writing great songs. (Candlelight Records)