Produced by guitarist Derek Miller, and written by Miller and singer Alexis Krauss, Reign of Terror is the highly anticipated follow up to 2010’s Treats. Treats’ deft, stylish combination of genres, sounds, and dynamics was simply unprecedented. The album’s own extreme volume was matched by the deafening roar of praise, putting the record on over 50 year-end lists for 2010. Sleigh Bells toured behind Treats relentlessly, opening for the likes of LCD Soundsystem, Hot Chip, Yeasayer and Major Lazer before headlining their own shows, many of which sold out in mere minutes. They played lauded, exhilarating sets at festivals around the globe, confirming their status as a sheer tour de force on the stage. It is this intense live energy, coupled with the continued desire to carve out new musical terrain, which runs throughout their new album, Reign of Terror. Engineered by Shane Stoneback, who helped to record Treats, songs on Reign of Terror are as crushing and authoritative as their title suggests; they’re effortlessly robust and heavier than any of the band’s previous output, but more melodic as well, the sonic equivalent of a beautiful shotgun to the head. Packed densely with stomping beats, shredding Jackson guitar riffs, sinister ribbons of Alexis Krauss’ candy-coated vocals, and the cries of a pep rally gone terribly wrong, Reign of Terror is a record that, like its predecessor, redefines everything you think music can be.