I've been looking forward to this album for a long time. It came out today, and I'll do a stream of consciousness review as I'm listening to each track......
Solve - A very cool start to this album. It begins with chanting children and the band soon comes in with a killer intro. I love drummer Inferno's fills - they remind me of my favorite Behemoth album - Demigod.
Wolves ov Siberia - I got to see this song live when they opened for Slayer. The chord structure reminds me of their Apostasy-era songs, but the blast beats in the verses remind me more of traditional black metal. This song translated really well live and I really love the orchestral stuff near the end - more an element to enhance the music, ala Nile, rather than classical virtuosity stuff like Fleshgod Apocalypse or Abigail Williams.
God = Dog - This song sounds evil. The drumming is very creative, which is what I love about Inferno. Nergal's vocals sound like his old stuff. I love the production of this song and album - very clear. I loved the layered vocals in their older stuff. I wish they did that here. I wonder who's singing the choir sounding stuff.
Ecclesia Diabolica Catholica - This song has the kind of drumming that made me lose interest in Behemoth before The Satanist came out. It's very straightforward double kick, but perhaps it's growing on me as a different sound for them. With extreme music, I mostly like a lot of changes - I think I get that from my love of Cryptopsy's "None So Vile". This song is kind of straight ahead driving. Oh wait now, check out this ending..... acoustic guitars that go into a different end section. Black metal blast beats - that's pretty cool.
Bartzabel - Whoa, a slow intro. Damn, those toms sound huge. I love Orion's bass sound. Cool song. Heavy as fuck when the loud section comes in, and then it drops back again. More of those weird classical vocals - not sure if I like them, but they change up the song. A lot of times, a slow song breaks up an album in a bad way - that's
If Crucifixion Was Not Enough - Cool, a punk rock beat! Something different for Behemoth. Works pretty good with the arpeggiated guitars. Nergal really has a unique style of writing. I think he's one of the few guys that write guitar riffs that sound both evocative of his influences and unique at the same time. Seth's (I think it's his) guitar solo is killer and I wish he shredded more of the other songs, but that's not really a huge part of the Behemoth sound.
Angelvs XIII - Where the hell do they get these song titles from? Aah, there are those Inferno drum fills that I love. I'm wondering if this album sounds disjointed, or interesting? Maybe if Inferno played the same beats for the whole album it would be boring. Oh, there are those layered vocals that I love. This might be my favorite song on the album.
Sabbath Mater - More classic Behemoth goodness (evilness?). Oh wait, there's that double kick beat. Hmmm.... now there's that punk beat. Cool high tom fill. Damn, Nergal's vocals are near perfect. This is the best he's ever sounded. He's definitely my favorite death / black metal vocalist. I think that's what I don't like about a lot of black metal - the vocals are too "high". Nergal never sounds like the Exorcist, but then his vocals aren't just pure low growl like Glen Benton or Corpsegrinder (both of whom I absolutely love).
Havohej Pantocrator - Another slow intro. Sounds like a mood piece in the beginning. Now it goes into a standard slow dirge type Behemoth piece. I like this one - it breaks up the album pretty well. Wow, they've really matured as songwriters. Cool blast beats in the middle. This is pretty epic sounding. Maybe this is my favorite song on the album. :)
Rom 5:8 - Another slow song with blastbeats throughout. I like this style. It's much more black metal than death metal, but it has more depth than a lot of black metal, or at least what I've heard.
We Are The Next 1000 Years - This sounds more traditional black metal. I think this would satisfy guys that are into Immortal and Gorgoroth, though it's a little more atmospheric and pop.
Coagvla - Good closer for the album. Blast beat fest with orchestral parts. I can totally see them closing shows with this. I'm headbanging to this as I'm listening to it.
This is a solid album! Having just seen them opening for Slayer, I have a renewed interest in their new music. I've always loved Demigod and The Apostasy, but I didn't like The Satanist as much, even though it's a great album. I think they strayed too much from the Death Metal aspect of their music and got more Black Metal. While I love BM, I love Behemoth because of the balance they achieve between the two. This album feels like a return to form for me.
No comments:
Post a Comment