Released by: Nuclear Blast
Release Date: Out Now!
Genre: Metal
Links:
http://behemoth.pl
https://www.facebook.com/behemoth
https://www.twitter.com/behemoth
Line Up:
Nergal: vocals, guitar
Seth: guitar
Inferno: drums
Orion: bass
Track-list
1 – Solve
2 – Wolves ov Siberia
3 – God = Dog
4 – Ecclesia Diabolica Catholica
5 – Bartzabel
6 – If Crucifixion Was Not Enough…
7 – Angelvs XIII
8 – Sabbath Mater
9 – Havohej Pantocrator
10 – Rom 5:8
11 – We Are the Next 1000 Years
12 – Coagvla
Gda?sk, Poland’s BEHEMOTH return after a five year gap with their latest full length release titled I Loved You At Your Darkest. We sat down and gave this album a spin several times and it has definitely been worth the wait.
“Solve” opens up the album with a group of children shouting, “I shall not forgive. .Jesus Christ. . I forgive him not” followed by an all guns blazing instrumental, no wind, bells or frills approach to set the tone of this powerful release. Blast beats and distant minor guitar chords being picked, making way for the first song of the album Wolves ov Siberia. Premiered a few times live by the band, begins on an even faster pace with deadly blast beats and a minor tremolo picked riff which reminded us of exactly where The Satanist left off. This track is a classic BEHEMOTH throughout and there is no room to breathe or escape. Halfway through the track it progresses to thumping drum beat section with just the guitars playing an icy black metal tremolo picked riff that has proven to go down great live.
Before giving this album a listen, we did wonder how it could top the previous release which was filled with passion and went down very powerfully among old and new fans of the band with some classing it as the bands best ever release. We were assured after around the halfway mark, that ILYAYD was just as impressive and filled with all the black metal brutality that fans of the band can expect. There isn’t a bad track on the album and it rips flawlessly.
“Ecclesia Diabolica Catholica” was a showstopper on the album for us, it stood out as the perfect BEHEMOTH track and is filled with powerful vocals. Hard-hitting from the beginning, the songwriting is superb with tempo changes from heavy to even acoustic guitar towards the end. The chanting backing vocals along with the progressive approach in this track proved how the band have hit back with yet another masterful release. You really notice how brilliant the technical playing of BEHEMOTH actually are, in particular the intense drumming from Inferno in this track. The production is crystal clear and every thump of the bass drum can be felt.
Another stand-out track was “Angelvs XIII” which begins with the sound of a monk meditating and a woman’s voice, before sharply cutting into one of the fastest and heaviest riffs on the album. This track is a neck-breaker with intense tremolo picking and blast beat drumming throughout. There is a really dark atmosphere throughout the album and probably the darkest we’ve heard so far. We now wonder how it’s going to be possible to top this powerful release.”Sabbath Mater” is another fast, in your face track, that reminded us of classic Celtic Frost, Bathory, and Venom with the raw pounding intro that is sure to be played live.
“We Are The Next 10,000 Years” is filled with blast beats and progressive song structures that groove in the bridge and chorus making it sound like a track taken from The Satanist. There’s an instrumental atmosphere in the background and slow doom style riffs that reminded us of Ulver in places but the black metal side of the playing was like early Burzum. There is definitely a lot of early black metal influences throughout the album combined with modern crisp production. The album closes with an instrumental “Coagvla” which has an upbeat chord progression with insanely fast blast beats leading to the album to and end with orchestral horns in the background.
Overall – This release is as close as you are going to get to The Satanist and could even be argued better ! We didn’t think it would be possible to top but this is a strong candidate for our favourite album of the year.
BEHEMOTH I Loved You At Your Darkest is out October 5th through Metal Blade. I think that all old and new fans will enjoy picking up this album and attending the bands upcoming shows starting on October 20th in Phoenix, Arizona. The band will embark on full world tour across the USA, Australia, UK and Europe. For a full list of dates please see https://behemoth.pl/
Ratings: 10/10
Written by: David Bell
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