Behemoth - The Satanist (2014) *Album of the Month*

The Satanist was a bit of a stunner for me, because I've never been the most vocal advocate of Behemoth. I like a lot of their albums, sure, from both the earlier black metal period and the transition into a more mainlined brutality, but there has long been this sort of vibe rolling off generation Hot Topic that this is somehow the greatest band since, like, Pantera. That their albums and videos have achieved some form of death metal nirvana, reflected through their successful tours, sales, and at in their home country of Poland, a sense of mainstream legitimacy that few extreme metal acts could claim. This is not necessarily any fault of the band, which works hard and puts out a consistent level of product; but if I'm being truthful, it's difficult for me to think of Behemoth as this messianic (or anti-messianic) force in metal. Though I've bought and enjoyed a number of their post transition records from the late 90s and beyond, I find them little more than a re-branding of aesthetics already present in bands like Morbid Angel, Deicide, Vader, Marduk, Dark Funeral and Krisiun. Maybe they have better stage costumes and makeup department, maybe they've got better art direction packaging on their albums, and surely Nergal is far more consumed by occultism than a lot of the death metal diocese which would claim otherwise, but the fact is that most of their music blasts straight into one ear and out the other...

Not the case for The Satanist, which has been for me the first instance in which Behemoth truly lives up to the surrounding hype; an album that is not only phenomenally well-written, but bolsters production standards that crush the fucking sun. Not a major stylistic deviation from their last few discs, but the plotting here at long last seems to translate into an actual slew of songs that I feel like listening to repeatedly, which is more than I could say for stuff like Evangelion, which possesses a proficient, punishing quality that seems to plateau at 'good', eluded by 'greatness' and only ever broken out when I want a reliable, indistinct bludgeoning. The Satanist is just such a more well-rounded experience...blast beats are weighted off against genuine moments of poignant atmosphere and restraint. Individual tunes are distinguishable from one another, and after hearing one I couldn't quite put my finger on what would happen in the next. The death and black metal genre tropes which have shaped Nergal's career are more evenly balanced, and the robust production aesthetics and the precision instrumentation have just never sounded better. While The Satanist is still not a perfect outing, and leaves some area for further expansion, it oozes conviction from every pore. We all know Darski had a rough spell health-wise, but that this is a testament to his survival gives it all the more impact. Coming back stronger and superior is after all a chief virtue of Satanic self-enlightenment, and so I'm not at all surprised he chose the absurd profundity of its overt title.

At any rate, much of the album is still a locomotive of seamless blasted structures which weave together the resonant tremolo picking and mildly dissonant chord choices, ominous octave chords sliding around the underbelly of hellish beats and Nergal's powerful if not entirely nasty sounding growls. If you were worried that the advance snippets of "Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel" somehow lacked the intensity you'd come to expect, tracks like "In the Absence ov Light" or "Amen" make short work of the assumption like a hurricane whipping through a field of origami blossoms. The bass tone on the album deserves particular praise, it's just so fat and voluptuous and only ever loses some presence when the band is blasting full force, but there is just never a moment where the compositions feel 'empty' or lacking...layers of rhythm guitars or wailing and blustering lead passages always arrive, or tempo shifts where that fat, fat low end starts pummeling into your imagination like an infernal juggernaut. The ambient orchestration that both sets up "Blow Your Trumpet Gabriel" into those enormous riffs, and returns, even more horrifying in the bridge, was the perfect touch to balance out what are occasionally average chord choices. In fact, I wish this had occurred more often through The Satanist than it did, but thankfully the record is ridiculously effective regardless.

Lyrically, it's not a departure from anything else Behemoth has done in the last 15 years, but as with the mix on the bass, the vocals are just gruesome and over the top. You can feel the guy barking his guts out as he drives all the evil ego-tripping home. He sounds revitalized, recharged, and though I doubt the purpose of an album like this is 'fun', that is ultimately the effect of such a visceral, convincing performance. Their albums have always had that sense of entertaining intimidation. 'Look how fast we can play! Look how great we look! Look how comfortable we are in our wicked skins!' But then I'd put on one of the better efforts from Lost Soul, Calm Hatchery, Decapitated or almost anything from Vader and smirk at how much more I preferred their songwriting capabilities. Suddenly, Nergal and company belong amongst that crowd. Not that they weren't already a more smashing financial success, enjoying a level of popularity flush with Morbid Angel, Cannibal Corpse, Cradle of Filth and Dimmu Borgir, but I can no longer safely relegate them aside to the ranking of 'overrated', or dismiss them like a snob. This is a genuinely excellent album, both in appearance and sound, caving in my skull nine times straight and making everything before it seem like the warmup. There is still a distance to go before I can hail a Behemoth disc as a masterpiece for all the ages, but The Satanist at least flirts with that idea, and inspires belief beyond barren praise.

Verdict: Epic Win [9/10] (in euphoria below)

http://behemoth.pl/

Behemoth - Evangelion (2009)

Though I've been listening to Poland's superstars for many years (yeah, since the black metal years), I've never been a card carrying member of the international fan club that seems to revere them as the greatest thing since Cradle of Filth. Do not get me wrong! Behemoth is a GOOD band. In fact, I can't recall an album of theirs that I didn't enjoy to some extent. They write solid, angry material and Nergal's neo-occult lyrical themes are always fascinating to me. The key to this band is visibility. Constant touring, videos, and the like have thrust them well beyond their prior obscurity into the eyes of the Hot Topic Metal Generation.

Evangelion is the band's 9th full length album, and it starts with a bang, as a chaotic burst of symphonic madness and Nergal's gruff incantations transforms into the thundering "Daimonos". Choppy, punishing, and fast death metal, somewhere between Morbid Angel and Vader, and par for the course. Behemoth has been erupting in this style for the past decade, since Satanica. Some still consider their style blackish metal, but aside from an occasional snarl and the corpse paint the band wears, it's really not. This album rarely lets up, aside from its mystical interludes (like the great intro to "Shemhamforash"), but if you want just over 40 minutes of headbanging frenzy, this is pretty much guaranteed to send you to the emergency room. There are a few excellent, crushing tracks on this like "Transmigrating Beyond Realms Ov Amenti", "He Who Breeds Pestilence" and the very Morbid Angel-like "The Seed Ov I" which make this album just as compelling as anything else they've released in many years.

I divine Iconoclast
injecting chaos into my veins
with life accepted
with pain resurrected
is the embrace ov god in man profound

Evangelion is effectively turbulent and sinister. The blasting is omnipresent, and Nergal's vocals are barbaric and disgusting. This band has certainly not compromised any of their aggression throughout the years of success they have attained. This is a death metal album worth hearing with a few tracks that I will return to, and has little less of the 'saminess' vibe that has plagued a few of their prior works. Behemoth fans will be jubilant, and death metal fans at large can find a lot to like here.

Verdict: Win [8/10] (this cosmos is way too small)

http://www.behemoth.pl/site/

Behemoth - And the Forests Dream Eternally EP (1995)

Let us return to simpler times, before Behemoth made their notable transition into Morbid Angel, Jr. And I mean no insult by this, their death metal records are generally impressive. But there was once this obscure little black metal band from Poland, and they put out some good EPs and even an album or two.

And the Forests Dream Eternally is one of the crowning moments of this early period, an EP of extremely cold and well executed black metal that can inspire nostalgia at the drop of an ax. "Transylvanian Forest" begins with a steady pace as its desolate, dissonant walls of guitar flood the listener with imagery of newsprint woodland terror, of bleak and monumental castles and the stalking of bloodthirsty wolves at your heals. Enter "Moonspell Rites" with its excellent Bathory vibe, grinding bass and charismatic heathen vocals. There is a different version of "Sventevith" here, the title track to their debut full-length, and it completely kicks ass. "Pure Evil and Hate" is perhaps the most punky and feisty of the tracks here, it seriously makes you want to strap on your shit kickers and find your local convent. The EP's closing track "Forgotten Empire of Dark Witchcraft" is a mellower track, with acoustic guitars vibrating alongside the distorted butchery. This tune aptly conveys the light touches of folksy atmosphere the band once incorporated into their sound.

Granted, these days are a far cry from the early sound, but I do miss it, and have always hoped they would return to an album like this at some point. Nergal has already proven he can fly and be a dominating mountaintop figure in his recent videos, how about soaring down into those cold valleys like a raptor of prey and delivering us yet another glimpse into this ancient woodland past. It would be more than welcome.

Verdict: Win [8/10] (like black statues born in the heart of winterevil)

http://www.behemoth.pl/

Behemoth - Ezkaton EP (2008)

The latest EP offering from Poland's corpse-painted death metal superstars is an interesting mix of material. You've got a few live tracks spanning their career. "From the Pagan Vastlands", "Decade Ov Therion" and "Chant for Ezkaton 2000 e.v.".

There is the studio version of "Chant for Ezkaton 2000 e.v." which is rather dull, and the far superior "Qadosh".

But most important here is the excellent choice of covers. They do a pretty hardcore cover of "I'm Not Jesus" by the Ramones! This is a classy cover here, from one of the punk gods' best and most underrated albums. And Behemoth make it their own with aplomb. Brutal! The other cover is "Jama Pekel" from the great Czech black Master's Hammer, one of my favorite bands from that country... and it sounds quite awesome in the hands of the Polish pretty boy brutes Nergal and company.

The covers alone make this EP worthwhile, and if you're a diehard for the past few albums you are also really going to enjoy "Qadosh". I could do without the live tracks and the "Chant for Ezkaton" wasn't so interesting, so in all I'm going to grade this in the middle.

Verdict: Indifference [6/10] (but a great choice of cover songs)

http://www.behemoth.pl/