Behemoth – Opvs Contra Natvram Review

Nergal has stated with this new release he didn’t have any time constraints like previous albums so he refined all the songs to the best they can be, which...

Genre: Extreme Metal

Label: Nuclear Blast

Release Date: September 16th 2022

 

Line Up:

Nergal – Lead Vocals/Guitar

Orion – Bass/Backing Vocals

Inferno – Drums

Seth – Guitar/Backing Vocals

 

Tracklist:

1 – Post God Nirvana

2 – Malaria Vvlgata

3 – The Deathless Sun

4 – Ov My Herculean Exile

5 – Neo-Spartacvs

6 – Disinheritance

7 – Off To War

8 – Once Upon A Pale Horse

9 – Thy Becoming Eternal

10 – Versvs Christvs

 

Is it 31 years since Behemoth’s main man Nergal decided that the extreme metal of the day wasn’t extreme enough? He set the record straight with four demo’s in two years before the first full debut album. Since then, the band has become legendary plus they’ve been cited by the Polish authorities for Blasphemy! Good work! So much for free speech.
Nergal has stated with this new release he didn’t have any time constraints like previous albums so he refined all the songs to the best they can be, which took 12 months.

Opener ‘Post God Nirvana’ takes you on a disturbing ride with Nergal’s barbed sermon set to ominous drums and the odd crunchy riff before ‘Malaria Vvlgata’ blasts forth on a brutal thrashing beast which ends abruptly for the even more metal/choral blast of ‘The Deathless Sun’. The latest single ‘Ov My Herculean Exile’ gets doomier before we get some real metal and dare, I say some groove on the fantastic ‘Neo-Spartacvs’. ‘Disinheritance’ takes its time to get going but when it does it rattles along and has a searing lead break then it’s ‘Off To War’ which has some wonderful orchestration courtesy of Jan Stoklosa and his orchestra plus a bruising riff and blasphemy – some melody! ‘Once Upon A Pale Horse’ is some dark metal that leads to the rabid and pure evil of ‘Thy Becoming Eternal’ which has some major groove and more of that orchestration. The final track ‘Versvs Christvs’ starts with some ominous major piano chords underneath Nergal’s malevolent whisper which send shivers up your spine then later it bursts to open into a massive black metal extravaganza with blast beats and raging guitars.

My knowledge of the black/death metal genre is minimal – I know what I like, and I like this. It’s bold and brazen and smacks of a band who don’t have any limits or constraints – they just create pure art. Sadly, recent reviews have not been too favorable, but I say ignore those and give this a go because the more you listen to it the more you will discover, plus, it sounds awesome thanks to the legendary Bob Ludwig who mastered the record.

 

Score: 8/10

Reviewed by: Smudge

 

About Author

 
Behemoth – Opvs Contra Natvram
8
Behemoth – Opvs Contra Natvram
The Good
  • Dark
  • Production
  • 8
Categories
Album ReviewsNews
EXTREME’S UNMATCHED MUSICAL MASTERY AND ELECTRIFYING STAGE PRESENCE: A DEFINING FORCE IN ROCK HISTORY LIVE AT MARS MUSIC HALL, HUNTSVILLE, AL
EXTREME’S UNMATCHED MUSICAL MASTERY AND ELECTRIFYING STAGE PRESENCE: A DEFINING FORCE IN ROCK HISTORY LIVE AT MARS MUSIC HALL, HUNTSVILLE, AL

EXTREME’S UNMATCHED MUSICAL MASTERY AND ELECTRIFYING STAGE PRESENCE: A DEFINING FORCE IN ROCK HISTORY LIVE AT MARS MUSIC HALL, HUNTSVILLE, AL

Photo Credit: Myglobalmind

Imminence - The Black

Following a four-decade hiatus, Dan Lilker will reunite with Anthrax for their forthcoming tour across the United States and South America

Chattanooga Chronicles: An Evening of Rock Majesty with Geoff Tate – Live at the Barrelhouse Ballroom

Erik Gronwall Departs Skid Row for Health Recovery; Lzzy Hale from Halestorm to Temporarily Fill In as Lead Singer

The Golden Grass – Life Is Much Stranger Review

RELATED BY

G-TQ58R0YWZE