ALBUM REVIEW: Varathron, "Patriarchs of Evil"

By: Conor O’Dea

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 27/04/2018

Label: Agonia Records

This is an album that gets better on every listen - there are depths here to appreciate, and it is a joyous triumph of an opus. 

“Patriarchs of Evil” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. Tenebrous
2. Into the Absurd
3. Luciferian Mystical Awakening
4. Saturnian Sect
5. Remnants of the Dark Testament
6. Hellwitch (Witches Gathering)
7. Orgasmic Nightmares of the Arch Desecrator
8. Ouroboros Dweller (The Dweller of Barathrum)

The Review:

There Charon stands, who rules the dreary coast –
A sordid god: down from his hairy chin
A length of beard descends, uncombed, unclean;
His eyes, like hollow furnaces on fire;
A girdle, foul with grease, binds his obscene attire 

In the pantheon of Greek metal gods, Stefan Necroabyssious must be one of the most obvious avatars of the infamous ferryman of the dead, son of Erebos and Nyx. He has, since founding Varathron in 1988, carried many souls across Hadean waters and into the depths of the Underworld itself. “His Majesty at the Swamp” (1993), a paean to the Acheronian mire, is unanimously (and rightfully) hailed as a classic of Hellenic black metal. From this point, Varathroncontinued a nearly unabated trajectory of epic black metal excellence, with “Stygian Forces of Scorn” being, perhaps, the zenith of the first part of that journey. “Untrodden Corridors of Hades”, an album which opens with an umbral and intense musical adaptation of Eliphas Levi's Kabalistic Invocation of Solomon, marked, for me, a subtle but important transition of their sound; it is actually darker and more ominous in many ways than earlier albums - murky, threatening, malevolent and agonistic. The other side of those untrodden corridors brings us to the triumphant, utterly majestic new album, “Patriarchs of Evil”. 

I am not sure how Varathron have managed to do it, but the Homeric, definingly Hellenic sound of the earlier albums has been successfully darkened by whatever mephitic wanderings were undertaken in “Untrodden Corridors..”. The tense, shadowy and unnerving sound which I see as transitional is brought back into seamless alignment with the epic tone and timbre of His Majesty, Walpurgisnacht and Stygian Forces. Opening track “Tenebrous” scores this passage unerringly - the introduction that feels like a celebration of apotheosis, a sublimation from apostle and acolyte of evil into the position of patriarch.

One of the most affecting and beguiling aspects of this album is how it feels like an

amazing rock album, in the most superlative sense. From the aggressiveness of “Into the Absurd” to the much more classic black metal sound of “Luciferian Mystical Awakening” and “Orgasmic Nightmare of the Arch Desecrator”, from the blazing “Saturnian Sect”to the haunting “Remnants of the Dark Testament” and the soaring “Hellwitch”, there is a cosmogonic sweep to “Patriarchs of Evil” which clearly demonstrates masters of their craft at the height of their powers. 

So place an obolos in the mouth of the dead. Take the journey again with this most proficient and dreaded of ferrymen. It will become rapidly clear why Varathronare indisputably Patriarchs of Evil. This is an album that gets better on every listen - there are depths here to appreciate, and it is a joyous triumph of an opus. 

But sail upon the wind of lamentation, my friends, and about your head row with your hands' rapid stroke in conveyance of the dead, that stroke which always causes the sacred slack-sailed, black-clothed ship of Kharon to pass over Akheron to the unseen land here Apollon does not walk, the sunless land that receives all men. 

“Patriarchs of Evil” is available here

Band info: facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Septicflesh - "Codex Omega"

By: Ernesto Aguilar

Album Type: Full length

Date Released: 01/09/2017

Label: Season of Mist

Septicflesh mostly sticks to what it is strongest at, and where its legend has been built: in beautifully composed, wicked death metal.

“Codex Omega” CD//DD//LP track listing

1. Dante's Inferno

2. 3rd Testament               

3. Portrait of a Headless Man

4. Martyr              

5. Enemy of Truth

6. Dark Art           

7. Our Church below the Sea

8. Faceless Queen

9. The Gospels of Fear

10. Trinity

The Review:

Hailing from Athens, Greece, Septicflesh has carved one of the most distinctive paths in extreme metal. Ten albums into its career, the quartet creates a brand of symphonic death metal that is rare for its style as it is in terms of longevity. "Codex Omega" marks the first album for the group since 2014, when "Titan" beguiled audiences. However, Septicflesh has a catalog of many triumphs, including 2011's "The Great Mass" and 2008's "Communion" as well as many more.

While symphonic death metal is admittedly not as populous as its cousin, symphonic black metal, Septicflesh is, virtually without question, regarded as the best group in the subgenre. Since its formation in 1990, the Greek ensemble has created some of the best music in the scene. Even with a four-year layoff following a breakup and reunion in the early 2000s, Septicflesh has managed not to lose its stride and instead put out some of the most respected music available. "Communion" is still today regarded as a touchstone moment for symphonic death metal. So, when "Codex Omega" was announced, hopes for the group could not have been higher.

Septicflesh begins with "Dante's Inferno." The strings and woodwind create the space here, only to make way for Christos Antoniou's explosive guitar. If you have heard the band before, its ascent on this song will feel familiar. Kerim Lechner's epic drumming surges through the opener, then into "Third Testament." There is nearly a scientific preciseness to it; chords unleash Hell as the orchestra meets them like an infernal chorus all their own. Later, songs like "Dark Art" and "Our Church" hew a similar path. Its signifiers -- lumbering riffs, diabolical vocals and a mammoth sound made larger by the overall arrangement – are not unique for the veteran band. Its members have the reputation they have for outstanding musical performances, and the opening of "Codex Omega" seems poised to do that legacy justice.

"Martyr" begins with a folkloric touch, until the more substantial guitar attack snakes in. With lyrics that convey themes of faith and intolerance ("A strife has grown between faith and wisdom/You choose to stand for the exalted ego/Your creation, a creation maimed/Blame the vultures for their vile way"), Septicflesh is also dedicated to powerful songwriting. The beauty of such a consistent and consummately great band like Septicflesh is you know what you're getting with their albums. The interchange between Christos Antoniou's guttural vocal and Sotiris Vayenas' clean vocals is one of those better features. On a song such as " Portrait of a Headless Man," the duo alternate with aesthetics that share a story ("I am a man with strong regrets/I followed great deceivers/Believe in headless leaders/They played their game, true sons of Cain/But I was a hopeless dreamer/With my head deep in the clouds") and also create an air of menace, even remorse. Their chemistry reminds you why Septicflesh is so loved among death metal devotees.

Septicfleshhas, at different points, mixed gothic and black metal influences into its symphonic death metal formula. Those elements are evident in cuts like "The Gospels of Fear." However, Septicflesh mostly sticks to what it is strongest at, and where its legend has been built: in beautifully composed, wicked death metal.

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

Septic Flesh - The Great Mass (2011)

Atmospheric Death Metal From Greece (Athens)

Hailing from Athens, Attica, Greece, Septic Flesh was founded in 1990. Their sound was a Hellenic brand of death metal mixed with doom metal and gothic metal elements. The band has often been compared to other bands of a similar style, like Paradise Lost, Anathema, My Dying Bride or Nightfall. In 2003 the band disbanded but reunited in 2007 with a different line-up.

Since reuniting, they play a mix of death metal and neo-classical. This combination is often described as atmospheric death metal or symphonic death metal.

MySpace

1. The Vampire From Nazareth 04:08

2. A Great Mass of Death 04:46

3. Pyramid God 05:13

4. Five-Pointed Star 04:33

5. Oceans of Grey 05:11

6. The Undead Keep Dreaming 04:29

7. Rising 03:16

8. Apocalypse 03:55

9. Mad Architect 03:36

10. Therianthropy 04:28

Total Playing Time: 43:35

Mp3, CBR 320 kbps

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