Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Acceptus Noctifer - Amores De Ofício (2009)

Amores De Ofício is the full-length debut of Portugal's Acceptus Noctifer, after releasing a few demos and splits. The style is sheer black metal, nothing more and nothing less, with a clear but bloody meat production. The guitars are carnal and well balanced with Sataere's morbid vocals, and the drum machine is just far enough back that it won't distract you too much. The lyrics are in Portuguese, but the inflection is enough that fans of straight from the hip black metal should enjoy them.

An album like this lives and dies by the quality of its riffs, and while the tone of Amores De Ofício really allows the guitars to shine through, like blood pooling on the tiles of an old slaughterhouse, the riffs themselves are average at best. The band offers just enough to keep one afixed, but even the more epic tracks like "Seja Essa A Tua Sede…" and "Funérea Madrugada" neglect to produce much interest. They serve only as a sufficient backdrop for the crepitating Sataere's bleak poetry. I found the strongest track to be the elegaic closer, "Canteiro de Ossos", which produces the best atmosphere. The acoustic instrumental "Rio de Moinhos" is also quite striking.

Acceptus Noctifer has its black heart in the right place, but just needs more thought placed in the actual guitars. They sound fluent, vibrant and raw (like countryman Onirik) but the note patterns did little to provide dark inspiration.

Highlights: Canteiro de Ossos, Rio de Moinhos

Verdict: Indifference [6/10]


http://www.myspace.com/acceptusnoctifer

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