After thirty diabolical years of blasphemy and perversion, blackened death metal stalwarts Belphegor return with their twelfth album The Devils. The Austrian extreme metallers are down to a core two piece of Helmuth (vocals and guitars) and Serpenth (bass) but are joined by drummer David Diepold (Obscura) in a guest capacity for the album. The core Belphegor sound of fiery black and death metal is still very much there and as intense and bloodied as ever with songs such as Totentanz - Dance Macabre and Damnation - Hoellensturz delivering evil tremolo riffs, relentless blast-beats and the unholy shrieks and roars of Helmuth but a lot of the album is made up of songs which expand the Belphegor sound.
You get the shifting tempos and complex song structure of the title track whilst Glorifizierung Des Teufels and Virtus Asinaria - Prayer are far more melodic and mid-paced with emphasis placed on the use of choirs, chants and a sense of grandeur. You also get songs like Kingdom Of Cold Flesh and Ritus Incendium Diabolus which try to merge the best of both worlds being fast, violent and extreme mixed with mid-paced and melodic moments. The Devils provides a familiar side of Belphegor along with a new melodic and grandiose side.
Whilst I applaud the progressive mindedness of the album it also left me yearning for the sonic depravity of the Belphegor of old with only Totentanz - Dance Macabre coming close to scratching that itch though for old school fans there is a bonus track Blackest Sabbath 1997 which is a medley of Blackest Ecstasy and Blutsabbath from the 1997 Blutsabbath album. I can’t fault a more melodic and grandiose Belphegor with songs such as Glorifizierung Des Teufels and Virtus Asinaria - Prayer being really effective but personally this is not what I want from a Belphegor album. A good experiment but one which doesn’t wholly land with me. I still enjoyed the album but by the end I wanted blast-beats. 7/10
God Is An Astronaut - The Beginning Of The End (Revive Records) [Rich Piva]
The pandemic has brought a wave of productivity and creativity from bands. You see a lot of content being delivered and some projects that may not have come to light if the bands were not looking for an outlet or revenue stream without the ability to play out. The Irish instrumental post rock band God Is An Astronaut took some of this time to revisit their twenty year old debut record The End Of The Beginning and record it live in the studio in a re-imagined form. The result is The Beginning Of The End, containing evolved and re-imagined versions, track by track, from their debut leveraging ideas of how these songs have been played live throughout their twenty year career.
God Is An Astronaut - The Beginning Of The End (Revive Records) [Rich Piva]
The pandemic has brought a wave of productivity and creativity from bands. You see a lot of content being delivered and some projects that may not have come to light if the bands were not looking for an outlet or revenue stream without the ability to play out. The Irish instrumental post rock band God Is An Astronaut took some of this time to revisit their twenty year old debut record The End Of The Beginning and record it live in the studio in a re-imagined form. The result is The Beginning Of The End, containing evolved and re-imagined versions, track by track, from their debut leveraging ideas of how these songs have been played live throughout their twenty year career.
A cool idea, but is it a necessary one? For fans of God Is An Astronaut this will be some exciting content. Re-imagined, live in the studio versions of their classic debut like the epic From Dust To The Beyond, the amazing, spacey Ascend To Oblivion, and the atmospheric goodness of Remembrance are all here in their new live and reinvigorated glory. The recording sounds amazing and these guys have not lost a step given how long they have been playing together. Though it is debatable how necessary this whole endeavour is for anyone outside of their current fanbase.
This may not be where I would start with God Is An Astronaut, but The Beginning Of The End is a nice treat for fans of the band rabid for some new content. If you enjoyed the first album and what these guys have brought to the table for the last couple of decades this one is for you. If you are looking for any groundbreaking stuff, we will have to wait for their next album.7/10
Palace - One 4 The Road (Frontiers Music Srl) [Matt Bladen]
The slickest of the slick, One 4 The Road is the fourth album from Michael Palace. He first debuted on Frontiers with the band First Signal but from there he has become one of the go to songwriter/guitarist/producer for so many of the Frontiers releases his discogs site must be 5 pages long. As well as these frequent collaborations he has been releasing a solo album every two years since 2016. On this fourth album the style stays the same, Palace a worshipper of that shiny, poppy, 80's AOR developed by bands such as Journey. There's an element of self reflection on this album as both Too Old For This and Time Crisis (not an homage to the seminal First Person Shooter) both feature lyrics about whether things are moving too fast in this day and age.
The rest of the record though is a unabashed celebration of girls, cars and the good life with Westbound, Fifteen Minutes and Money Can Kill all in that style of open top sports cars cruising down the highway, I will say that lyrically Palace is a little hit and miss for me as some of the tracks feature homages to the Sunset Strip, Westbound especially singing about being back in the old home town skateboarding, I knew this was popular in California but not in Sweden. So yeah there's a lack of authenticity in the lyrics and some of the ballads such as The Driver edge too much into the country pop for me however all in all One More 4 The Road is another trip into music history where the riffs were bigger but the hair was bigger. 7/10
Defected Decay - Troops Of Abomination (Silent Watcher Records) [Erick Willand]
From the opening notes you know what’s going on, there is no question. This is Bolt-Throwerian war metal at its finest. Hailing from the Ruhr region in Germany and consisting of core members Daniel Funke and Dirk Padtberg, Troops Of Abomination is their second full length album and was mastered by the living legend, Dan Swano. Learning this fact after 5 full listens explains completely why it sounds so damn good, blasted loud or with headphones everything is crisp. I do recommend headphones of course, and not earbuds either, those are for amateurs. Anyway…
Defected Decay - Troops Of Abomination (Silent Watcher Records) [Erick Willand]
From the opening notes you know what’s going on, there is no question. This is Bolt-Throwerian war metal at its finest. Hailing from the Ruhr region in Germany and consisting of core members Daniel Funke and Dirk Padtberg, Troops Of Abomination is their second full length album and was mastered by the living legend, Dan Swano. Learning this fact after 5 full listens explains completely why it sounds so damn good, blasted loud or with headphones everything is crisp. I do recommend headphones of course, and not earbuds either, those are for amateurs. Anyway…
As I said, the opening of Commit To The Fire begins the battle clearly and with no fanfare whatsoever. It’s a rumbling mechanised advance and when the chorus comes in Commit To The Fire with that echo effect, a cannon blast on the last “Fire!”. It’s perfect. Resist leads in with a slower riff but the power doesn’t give ground at all and is marked by an epic haunting solo that sticks in the air like the bullet you know has your name on it. The Last Farewell is a dirty little song which I interpreted as from the view of a sniper forgotten behind enemy lines, it’s hard to tell as the lyrics are a bit vague, it’s also one of the only songs here that sound a little bit phoned in. However the vocals are top of the game and save the song in my opinion. This leads into the meaty crunchy riff that begins Troops Of Abomination and my word, this is prime war metal. Are they breaking new ground, no. Are they redefining the sub-genre, no. Are they absolutely crushing it, fuck yes. You can’t help but howl along with the smoke choked growl of “Trooooooopssss offff Abomination!!!”
Bitter Reminders is the album's midpoint and easily the most powerful lyrics so far, clearly dealing with the kind of PTSD that comes from continued exposure to the horrors of war. The song starts with a bass riff before everything else comes rumbling in like a cavalry charge. It's a haunting, powerful song and my favorite track here next to the title track. Siege Of Death is the next track and has the wickedest riff on the whole album, and the whispered Siege Of Death is a cool touch, adding a haunting quality to the song. Beyond All Comprehension is another heavy lyrical song dealing with the Holocaust and it’s undeniable horrors. Its chugging main riff is led by a more whaling, mournful riff that in my opinion fits the song perfectly. This is followed by Redemption Acquired about the western front and though it doesn’t hold any surprises is a solid song and gives out probably some of the strongest Bolt Thrower vibes yet, especially these solos.
The Raid and Death March close out the battle like a final barrage. The Raid is an intense song with a clear sense of urgency. I’m not sure what The Raid is about but I think it’s definitely referencing a historical event. I love the lead riff in the early half of the song, at about 1:10, its keening edge is sonically menacing and it’s a nice touch. Death March again goes to WWII and the abject cruelty of the Reich as they forced “undesirables” into camps or death. It’s the longest track overall and carries some of the best guitar work of the album. Defected Decay play war metal as passed down by the masters, and as stated they aren’t breaking new ground here and to be honest that’s ok by me.
The rumbling chug and thunder, the lyrics and cover art all check the right war metal boxes. My only quibble is that so many war bands are stuck in this era and I’d love to hear them dig into something like the Punic Wars, or the War of 1812, I mean history is really interesting my dudes, dig deeper please. Ok then, since I put this on my “get physical copy” list I’m giving it a solid 8/10
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