REVIEW: Full Of Hell - Broken Sword, Rotten Shield

Formed in 2009, Full Of Hell are known for their unrelenting blend of grindcore, death metal, noise, and power electronics. Over the years, they’ve built a reputation as one of extreme music’s most boundary-pushing acts, thanks to a prolific discography that includes collaborations with The Body, Merzbow, and Primitive Man.

Now the Pennsylvania grindcore giants are back with their latest EP offering, entitled Broken Sword, Rotten Shield. This new release follows up on last year's critically acclaimed studio album Coagulated Bliss, and their collaboration with Andrew Nolan Scraping the Divine.

Produced by Kevin Bernstein and released by Closed Casket Activities, Broken Sword, Rotten Shield’s release is followed by a stacked North American tour, with the likes of Harm’s Way, Kruelty, Jarhead Fertilizer, and Clique.

Lyrically, Broken Sword, Rotten Shield weaves together themes of love, grief, and inevitable loss with a warped, dark fantasy-esque narrative. It conjures images of noble quests and loyal, doglike guardians - symbols of the pure, unwavering bonds we form in life - only to watch them fall to ruin in a brutal confrontation with mortality. It's a short but emotionally loaded journey, where the mythic and the personal collide in genuine Full Of Hell fashion, with overwhelming force.

The release kicks off, again in typical Full Of Hell fashion. Title track 'Broken Sword, Rotten Shield' sets the stage for a seven-track auditory onslaught. Frenzied blast beats, jagged riffs, and Dylan Walker’s signature vocal abrasion tear through the mix with surgical brutality. 

The title track reveals the album’s central theme: that in the face of time and death, all living things are equal. It’s a clear statement of intent for the record - relentless, raw, and unflinchingly aggressive - reminding listeners that, while the band continues to evolve, their core remains rooted in pure sonic violence. From there, the EP rarely lets up, barrelling through moments of noise-drenched grind and scorched-earth hardcore with vicious precision. 

Despite the EP’s overwhelming intensity, there are a sprinkling of moments where the chaos gives way to reflection and clarity. 'To Ruin and the World's Ending' stands out as a perfect bookend to the release. Drawing the curtain with a sense of grim finality. Slower and more deliberate than the tracks before it, the song unfolds like a funeral procession—bleak, sludgy, and heavy with emotional weight. It ties the EP together both thematically and sonically, reflecting on the destruction left in the wake of loss and the quiet devastation that follows.

Broken Sword, Rotten Shield is yet another incredible release in an already impressively expansive and varied discography. You’d be forgiven for thinking there would be some pure filler among these releases. Still, every single release is a well-crafted, tightly polished creative endeavour that shines on its own merit. Broken Sword, Rotten Shield is no exception to this. Following on from Coagulated Bliss was always going to be a monumental task, as the band’s sixth full-length studio album is truly a thing of beauty. Yet Broken Sword, Rotten Shield takes such a bold, creative, and thematic turn, making it an undeniable standout release for the band.

Score: 9/10

Broken Sword, Rotten Shield was released on May 16th 2025.

Words: Andrew Nile

Photos: Full Of Hell