Norma Evangelium Diaboli, 2007
Genre: Black Metal
1. Obombration
2. The Shrine of Mad Laughter
3. Bread of Bitterness
4. The Repellent Scars of Abandon and Election
5. A Chore for the Lost
6. Obombration
This is the long awaited follow-up to the grandiose work “Si Monvmentvm Reqvires, Circvmspice.” Unfortunately I am a little disappointed in it. Musically it is more a continuation of “Kénôse” than of “Si Monvmentvm.” For those who loved “Kénôse” you will surely love “Fas” even more, because I would say that it is a grander improvement on the works found within “Kénôse.”
“Fas” is a surprisingly far more technical work than I was expecting. While this isn't always a bad thing, when something doesn't meet ones expectations that well, one is typically disappointed. Many people I know had read the interview with Deathspell Omega displayed at The Ajna Offensive and that sort of set our expectations. For one they stated it would be in similar length to “Si Monvmentvm,” which “Fas” is not. However, a friend of mine theorized (probably correctly) that it was probably going to be a combination work of “Kénôse” and “Fas” and that would be considered the similar length. This did not go as planned, obviously. For me I would say the music is a blending of the song “Diabolus Absconditus” and the album “Kénôse.” I think “Fas” is a little darker than “Kénôse,” which only helps hold my interest a bit more. However, the tracks on “Fas” don’t feel memorable to me. Nothing really stands out. When compared against “Si Monvmentvm”, “Fas” pales in comparison. I was expecting something more akin to “Si Monvmentvm” in terms of its mesmerizing and level of eloquence, but even lyrically on this one it appears to follow “Diabolus Absconditus.” It has more of a feel of dementia and insanity, questioning the points of existence when faced with a tyrannical God, etc. Either way, I was honestly expecting a greater work, with a lot more hypnotic passages, like those found on “Si Monvmentvm,” but alas, my dream was not to come true.
As I mentioned above, lyrically I was slightly disappointed as well. You won’t get a lengthy treatise this time around, for those expecting it. Lyrically this works more like an essay similar to “Diabolus Absconditus.” However, I found the work to ramble a bit more, have less coherence overall, and was overdone in complexity. Though, I assume that is somewhat the point of the whole model, since it seems to consist of the concept of mankind dealing with the general insanity of needing some vestigial deity that commands it to do specific things, yet gives humanity free will. The command’s are, genuinely, somewhat maddening... inherently anyway, so that was probably the whole point. Regardless of the obvious points that mankind shouldn’t like a slave religion such as Christianity, I found the hidden wisdom content of this work unimpressive. It seems like the writing is more veiled, but upon closer inspection it is merely the philosophical musings of someone who is mad at all the ignorant beings in the world that follow an organized religion, and then that person slips into madness trying to find their way out. What can I say? I didn’t find the concepts all that illusive. There may be some deeper meanings within it, but the presence of hidden occult wisdom, is sorely missing, something I greatly enjoyed with “Si Monvmentvm.” By the way, for those who are curious “obombration” means to darken. Which is probably the integral point of the lyrics. The truth was darkened by ignorance? Perhaps.
The booklet and imagery of the work is quite beautiful though. The imagery is very stunning and tells a story in itself, of people falling into ignorance then setting into prayer because they don’t understand the world around them, then eventually being lead to death and withering. Though the image that stays constant, I haven’t decided what it is yet. Possibly the sun, could just as easily be the Earth though, but I suspect it is the sun (since in most ancient religions that represented the ultimate deity). Each song has its own seal image, which brings a compelling artistic work into play, something I did quite enjoy about the booklet. It’s similar to what Lux Occulta did on their “The Mother and the Enemy."
In the end this didn't capture my attention as much as the previous works, though I think “Fas” is better than “Kénôse.” This appears to be the direction Deathspell Omega wants to go in musically, so if this is truly what brings them joy, then there is clearly no point in them changing. However, I still enjoy “Si Monvmentvm” quite a bit more, because I felt that work had a more compelling message and was a rather fresh sound. Granted “Fas” and its styling is a fresh sound to Black Metal in its own right, I just had a harder time latching onto the work. I am sure this will get rave reviews other places, and maybe fame is part of the reason they have stuck with doing this, but I will always enjoy the earlier works more, especially “Si Monvmentvm.”
Northern Heritage, 2005
Genre: Black Metal
Disc 1: Father
Deathspell Omega:
1. Diabolus Absconditus
Stabat Mater:
2.Above Him
Disc 2: Son
Musta Surma:
1. Ruton Ruhtinas
2. Hän on Pimeys
3. Vakeuden Hauras Tuhka
Clandestine Blaze:
4. Untitled
5. Destroyer of the Nations
6. Trophy
7. Behind the Faith
Disc 3: Holy Spirit
Mgła
1. Power and Will I
2. Power and Will II
3. Power and Will III
4. Power and Will IV
Exordium:
5. Ei Toivottu Vieras (Intro) / Tyrannia Martyrum
6. Craving Vehemence
7. Unevangel
Side Stabat Mater: ...coming eventually...
Side Musta Surma: ...coming eventually...
Side Clandestine Blaze: ...coming eventually...
Side Mgła: here
Side Exordium: ...coming eventually...
The paragraph you are about to read will be deleted as soon as I review both “Kénôse” and the “Malicious Secrets/Deathspell Omega Split.” I have decided to abruptly review this work instead of deeply interpreting the lyrical premises for this album, because I feel I can sufficiently attack and dissect this work without such research. Normally for something like Deathspell Omega I take a solid few months to look over the work and work out what precisely they are attempting to say, but as “Crushing the Holy Trinity” features a track that seems to be somewhat outside the Deathspell Omega concept series, less interpretation is as needed, in comparison to something like “Kénôse.” I hope that this explains why this is reviewed before the other two magnificent works.
As is typical of me, as soon as I heard this was out I bought it immediately. What exactly is “Crushing the Holy Trinity 3CD Split.” Here’s the deal, I’ll talk about this split and packaging before I dissect Deathspell Omega’s participation on this, this way I can split up this review more coherently and I must explain what is going on with the split design before I can convey how Deathspell Omega was involved.
“Crushing the Holy Trinity” is basically a series of split albums in one “box.” I say “box,” in quotes, because truly, it is more of a folder. Basically the overall conceptualization of this split series took four years. One would think that after a solid four years of work a digi-book would have possibly been comprised in the design function. Something like Behemoth’s “Historica” box set would have been a beautiful rendition for such a momentous series such as this. What you get when you purchase this set is basically a cardboard “sleeve”, it’s not really a sleeve by literal standards, but it is the best analogy I can make. Inside this “sleeve” is a large booklet inside. Within the booklet you can find the lyrics to all the works on this split set, and in the middle of the booklet we find the actual CDs. They are in little plastic sleeves that are, literally, completely separate from the booklet itself, they are loose inside the booklet, so be careful when opening things up, if you do indeed decide to procure a copy of this. Everything is professionally pressed and rendered, which surprises me even further as to why they chose to present their product in this fashion. I’m not sure how much money they actually saved by using this method of packaging, but I think in the end they will lose more sales because of the packaging rather than gaining them. I think Northern Heritage, on some levels, is banking on Deathspell Omega’s popularity to sell this disc set. Which is a damn shame, because there are other good bands on here like Exordium and Mgła, so one would think Northern Heritage wouldn’t cut corners. Maybe this is the new business outlook to try and turn people away from your products so no one will want them because the functionality of the product is too annoying for a listener to open up. I mean Deathspell Omega originally strictly limited the pressings of their albums; Northern Heritage is apparently just taking that to the next level with this packaging concept. I say that it’s functionally annoying with all accuracy; this is not the easiest packaging to get to your CDs and listen to them if you want to, and it’s not simply opening up a jewel case like most of the world is accustomed with. Maybe this was a collaborative work between Northern Heritage and one of those puzzle companies.
Deathspell Omega enters the sequence on the “Father” disc, furthering my assumptions that Deathspell Omega is markedly one of the selling points of this split set. The real unfortunate part here is that with a Deathspell Omega song this good, it clearly will be one of the major selling points, despite how good Exordium or the others are. I don’t feel that I would be alone in stating that this is by far the strangest Deathspell Omega track I’ve heard to date. This is even further removed than the works on “Kénôse.” I’ve heard rumors and hearsay about how this was the last in the trilogy work for Deathspell Omega, with their Malicious Secrets split being the second work. Honestly, I don’t see how that makes any sense, first off Deathspell Omega never announced that these tracks were part of the trilogy, maybe they play into the overall concept as merely touching upon similar concepts, but they don’t really close this song with any sort of great revelation to me. Furthermore in the interview on Ajna, which I might have to link again because the world is not fucking listening to me, they say THE SECOND AND THIRD WILL BE OF SIMILAR LENGTH TO THE FIRST. There, it’s in caps lock, maybe now people can hear, or see, as it were. Anyway, the lyrical work on this particular concept is very interesting, but in comparison to the mind boggling and eye opening works of “Si Monvmentvm Reqvires, Circvmspice,” this is merely a small contender. Not to mention this is just one song, and I highly doubt Deathspell Omega were going to finish their grandiose concept off with two more songs, regardless of how long, seeing as how the appendix is three songs unto itself.
The track opens with this ominous sample with a French spoken word part by a woman. I presume this is a sample as the words are not written on the lyrics sheet. Then we are all brought into Deathspell Omega’s ominous and haunting world as they break into a very dissonant picked chord for quite a duration. It lends to the haunting feeling and ominous world of the song. Mikko A. kicks in with his vocal performance; I think this is the one occasion where his lack of meter really provided a great listen. The lyrics are written in more of a paragraph format and are not broken up into verses. So right from the start the need to break things into different sections is thrown out the window. It’s more of a tale regaling the thoughts of a madman in his perceptions of God, so that lends to the feeling that the song should sound insane and should lack a decent amount of format. Mikko A. does sound far more sinister than he did on previous works, but I think this could’ve sounded far more maddening. As a vocalist, I would have presented the vocal performance into a far more methodical, yet far more maddening performance. While we do experience a slight difference in range here and there, I felt that to really drive the point home, some different approaches could have taken place. This by no means is me saying the vocal performance is bad; it certainly is excellent for the hypnotic Black Metal effect Deathspell Omega was going for.
On this track the listeners don’t really hit a full fledged Black Metal riff until a solid seven minutes into the song. Everything prior to that is dissonant and haunting structures. Mikko’s vocal performance for the haunting parts is perfect, but he maintained the same approach through the more traditional Black Metal parts of the song, I think a tonal shift would’ve lent more to the songs structuring. It really astounds me how often Deathspell Omega can completely rework their sound. This track sounds unlike anything Deathspell Omega has ever released before. Granted it has the traditional Deathspell Omega approach written all over it, but in the middle of the song around 10:40 we are presented with something Deathspell Omega have never done before, an acoustic interlude. This isn’t just any acoustic interlude mind you, such as what we hear in the more traditional works of Black Metal, it is haunting, in-depth, and brings the listener into this apprehensive state wondering what is coming next. The part that comes to the fore for the first time that I have really noticed is the bass work. The bass work was very instrumental in making this a more beautiful rendition than anything else. Eventually it transitions into another acoustic passage this time with Mikko whispering over it, however, the vocals do not take the forefront, they stay in the background. As if the reader of the lyrics is experiencing a soliloquy on what has transpired before. After the first sequence of spoken verse is complete I am shocked to hear something wondrous happen. Overlaid to the acoustic part is a backwards acoustic guitar line played in perfect time with the main guitar line. I honestly never saw this coming, I assumed that the haunting acoustic works would continue, yet I never expected something this maddening to play into the game. It’s not even a long interval that this performance is played, merely a few seconds, yet it speaks volumes to the listener. It truly is a wondrous effect in the song structuring. However, after the acoustic passage is finished the full force of Deathspell Omega’s Black Metal renderings play forth through the rest of the song making this one of the best Black Metal epics I have ever heard in my entire life. The guitar lines appear to be more complex in the Black Metal elements, similar to what they brought forth on “Kénôse,” but they have more of the atmosphere of “Si Monvmentvm Reqvires, Circvmspice,” which is an aspect I love.
Now, I may not do the lyrics justice in saying that I will not do an in depth interpretation of them this time. I mostly do this out of respect, I do not know who G. Bataille is and the lyrics seem to be heavily influenced by this writer. Or, rather, as they put it “credit for tremendous revelation goes, in all humility, to G. Bataille." I can only assume that “revelation” refers to lyrical influence. It would seem that the overall prospectus of this lyrical work is based on one who has attained full spiritual enlightenment and it has driven the person mad. It is not a foreign concept to me, for one to think on a level such as God, then that could drive the man mad, especially in the context of the man not being ready or sufficiently prepared to receive this ultimate knowledge. One could also look at this in a sense that the lyrics present the point of: if you are able to think on God’s true level then you also inherit the madness within God, for truly God is mad to make a world such as this.
Norma Evangelium Diaboli, 2004
Genre: Black Metal
1. First Prayer
2. Sola Fide I
3. Sola Fide II
4. Second Prayer
5. Blessed are the Dead Whiche Dye in the Lorde
6. Hétoïmasia
7. Third Prayer
8. Si Monvmentvm Reqvires, Circvmspice.
9. Odivm Nostrvm
10. Jvbilate Deo (O Be Joyfvl in the Lord)
11. Carnal Malefactor
12. Drink the Devil's Blood
13. Malign Paradigm
This review is eleven pages
long. I feel I should say this now, for
those of my readers interested in just the musical aspects please read the fourth
paragraph only. The fourth paragraph
discusses the advancement of the musical nature perpetuated by Deathspell
Omega. The remaining parts of this
essay, since this is technically more than a marginal review, presents an in
depth analysis of the lyrical and metaphysical interpretations of God and Satan inherent throughout the entire text. For those curious on concepts of higher
thinking and who enjoy thinking outside the proverbial box, I have an
interpretation of their lyrics. Whether
it is correct or incorrect does not fully matter, I think those who enjoy
research on the topics of theology and spirituality will find it a fascinating
and enjoyable read nonetheless.
I have spent a great deal of
time reflecting on this album, far more than is probably necessary, about its
true underlying meaning. An album of
this nature can contain profound philosophical truths that otherwise cannot
easily be viewed from a narrow minded perspective. Deathspell Omega is one of the few bands
today that have managed to transcend the musical and spiritual bridge and allow
them to coexist in one spectrum naturally.
Now what does that mean you may ask?
Well, throughout the course of this essay hopefully I will be able to
bring some light to overall nature of this topic. This is the first release in a conceptual
trilogy that Deathspell Omega is working on; they have spent the past two years
working on this to make the conceptual aspects work perfectly with the musical
and to transition the aural essence into something more. Surprisingly, bands, particularly from France Blut Aus
Nord Blut
Aus Nord
I have read a very lengthy
interview from Deathspell Omega, one of the two they ever gave thus far at the
time I write this. Now my opinion on the
interview was that they were speaking in a cryptic form on purpose to provoke
listeners to go discover truth for themselves.
I feel they are probably quite like me because I do not like to discuss
and give away everything I know, especially since many things can be discovered
through reading. I believe research like
this helps to perpetuate mankind’s intellect and bring us into a higher echelon
of thought. I prefer the human mind to
work in its own way and discover things for itself then one will truly
understand how to perceive the knowledge.
They made an excellent point in the interview though; the music on this
album is not designed for someone who is not ready to perceive things on a
spiritual level. This album is not meant
to be listened to just as something to entertain a listener on an aural
level. If you are interested in Black
Metal because you think the music is cool and has nothing more to offer then
you are listening to it for the incorrect reasons. In fact, a person listening in this capacity
may have possibly missed the point of the genre entirely. Also this album is, most certainly, not
designed for said person and all of this was laid out in the interview, for they
said it better than my abridged version here.
All I can say is that I agreed with most of what they said, some not so
much.
In order to start off, allow
me discuss the changes and immense improvement upon the Deathspell Omega
world. Also, stated in the interview
they mentioned that their earlier lyrical conceptions were very primitive in
written form. Upon reading the lyrics to
“Inquisitors of Satan,” I cannot help but agree with their assessment of the
situation. Compared with “Si Monvmentvm
Reqvires, Circvmpsice,” their previous efforts seem quite lacking in
concept. However, they did reuse a song
from the first album “Infernal Battles” called “Drink the Devils Blood.” I find this curious since it sort of fits in
with their overall concept on this album, but why did they not write a wholly
new song. They did take the necessary
measure to adjust the lyrics for this song, but the music has remained the
same. On a more musical level the music
is far superior to previous releases. It
is thought out in an incredible manner, honestly, from listening to the
previous works I did not expect something of this degree to ever be released
from them. One of the first things that
stuck out was that they use blast beats on the drums, whereas on the previous releases
they just used them once and I do not mean the alternating beat between the
hi-hat and snare. I mean the straight
forward fast blasts, which caught me off guard when I first listened. Now the album has some excellent and shocking
parts that have a really eerie essence to the songs. This gives an incredible esoteric feel to the
overall album. They are typically found
on the prayer aspects of the album.
“First Prayer” is an incredible intro, which sets the mood for the
incredible essence for the whole album.
I believe the guitar track is played backwards at first and soon enough
some singing kicks in, reminiscent of an Arabic chant in sound. I did read a review for this and the person
that wrote it stated that it was, in fact, a recording of a Black Mass. This, unfortunately, has not been verified by
me and I would like to know where the notion comes from since Deathspell Omega
really does not speak with anyone. At times
the music is similar to that found on earlier releases; however, it is in a
much upgraded form. Much more thought
and complexity has been put into the song writing process, which is wholly
understandable since they spent two years working on this album alone. One of the more shocking aspects of this
album hits on the song “Carnal Malefactor,” where the song is fairly Black
Metal oriented song until about two or so minutes in and then it kicks in with
a Gregorian Chanting interlude. I found
this a very shocking aspect to include within this album. It takes up a rather good portion of the song
and gives it more of an ethereal presence to the album, like an out of body
experience. One aspect of the music’s
essence I will discussed at the end, because it involves a spiritual belief of
my own and transitions into something about Blut Aus Nord
I must start my lyrical
analytical model by saying that Deathspell Omega far outdoes even my knowledge
of spirituality and religious aspects. I
am fairly well read on the topic and I will even include a bibliography at the
end of this review for those of you few souls who are truly interested in
researching the true meaning of divinity.
However, after reading through the lyrics I have come to the conclusion,
even my seven years of research thus far on the topic is quite lacking to
interpret these lyrics in any extremely complete manner. Furthermore, I highly doubt Deathspell Omega
will ever be very forthcoming with a full interpretation of the album, or
concept series, unless they are interviewed by the proper person whom at least
has some background on their underlying concepts. I found the interview, I read and will
reference, very lacking in this aspect, for they were asked some questions here
and there, but they gave cryptic answers.
Rather than the interviewer pursuing further explanation on their focal
points of knowledge, the interview was merely left to die off. For all I know this may have been a slight
restriction on the interview process because it may have simply been done via
the internet e-mail rather than a more interactive mode of communication. I do not believe this was meant for everyone
to understand and they believe this as well and thus they are not forthcoming
with such information.
“If you seek His monument,
look around you.” This is the
translation of the album title and it is very obvious that there are some
serious religious overtones. While at
first glance this album appears wholly influenced by Catholicism and
Christianity, but in fact it embodies so much more than that. I can see direct references concerning The
Gnostic Bible and no doubt I’m sure aspects of Kabbalah are found within. Christianity, for this album, is a major
overtone found throughout the lyrical base.
However, I have heard hearsay that this band cannot seem to identify
with either being pro-God or pro-Satan.
Throughout my reading of their lyrics I say, verily unto you, they are
indeed on the side of Satan . However, something must be said in terms of
deifying an entity.
Over the course of history as
one religion replaces another, the original religions deities usually are
demonized. What once was good has now
become evil. A similar occurrence can
probably be seen here, for Deathspell Omega deify’s Satan ,
whereas Christians demonize the entity.
They do identify that Satan brings pestilence
to the world per se, but they also view him as a bringer of truth. As I have come to understand their meanings
in the interview. So by this outlook Satan would be an enlightening deity rather than simply the
perception that it is a representation of ultimate sin to the Christians. I find this a curious outlook or mold to fit
into seeing as how God is viewed as the most enlightening figure in a greater
majority of religions. Now the part to
really make you think is that Deathspell Omega could indeed be using Satan in the tradition translational meaning:
Adversary. Thus, they would invariably
be saying that the God that Christians follow would be a blinding deity and
their deity, whom is an adversary of Christianity, is the enlightening
one. So the real question at this
philosophical juncture is whose God is technically more enlightening? Which view holds the meaning of a true
God? Viewed here, one man’s demon is
another man’s god and this could be said vise versa for varying religious
factions.
Now, I realize that in the
interview Deathspell Omega said it was a moot point to study the etymological
root of Satan because their perception is purely metaphysical. I will discuss the metaphysical in a moment,
but for now I do think some research on the etymological root of the word Satan warrants some mentioning, though it does not play much
of a role in their concept. “Satan ” in Hebrew means “adversary,” as I have pointed out
above. “Christ ”
means “savior,” for those who were unaware.
Now Satan ’s perception in the Bible is that
he is Christ ’s adversary as far as I have come to
understand. However, if we trace the history
back of the entity, it was once called Lucifer.
Lucifer, supposedly denied God in the Heavens and he is the fallen
angel. However, in my research of the
Cathar Texts, found in the modern day Gnostic Bible, have a wholly different
interpretation as to how mankind was created and Lucifer’s real relationship to
God. I will touch upon this in full
later. The interesting aspect in
Deathspell Omega is that even though Satan is meant
to be an adversary it seems they are using that image in conjunction with Christ ’s words. Much
of the lyrical concepts are quotes from the Bible and I have noticed that, it
seems, with alternate interpretations, a true meaning behind the Biblical
message can be found. A great portion of
the aspects of Christ ’s dialogues seem to be
distorted by the current churches, probably because they are afraid of
truth. From this stand point Satan can
be viewed as the adversary of lies, which in this case would be represented by
the Church.
From the interview, I learned
that every image shown within the booklet is derived from the overall meanings
conceived within the album, even those with Christian and Satanic
iconography. The front cover is the
image I shall discuss more in depth, because the rest are somewhat touched upon
in the interview and therefore I see no need to reiterate what has been already
written. Though, they are not explained
in full detail in the interview, and I personally do not know the complete
meaning of the symbolism even after reflecting upon the interview. However, I think I understand the cover in a
decent enough philosophical detail. The
clue given to us, in the interview, is that the line from the song “Sola Fide”
states “The heart of a lost angel is in the Earth.” The cover features a deformed baby angel
above an old and apparently rotting picture of the earth. This, in turn, could allude to the story of
the fallen angel, Lucifer, falling to Earth from Heaven. This would be an interesting aspect to
consider, the heart of evil residing within the Earth. Think about how that would influence the
species on this planet. If one
extrapolates upon this, the conception that the Earth is inherently a sinful
place would be a rather factual comment at this point. For the heart of the Earth would be the one
and the same as this angel and thus the inherent evil would be a flux of
darkness continuously infecting the Earth and all the species held upon.
The rest of the lyrics to
“Sola Fide” have an interesting atmosphere because it states things such as “I
spit on Christ’s redemption and to it I shall renounce.” Later they state “And he that keepeth his
commandments dwelleth in him, and He in him.”
Now the only explanation I can think of for this is that the latter
statement comes from the Old Testament if memory serves me correctly. Now denying Christ
does not necessarily mean you deny the existence or essence of God, especially
on a metaphysical level. You can do all
this with renouncing Christ and seeing his teachings
as an abomination of the true word of God.
This is basically how the Jews view Jesus ’
message for the most part, which, is why the religions are quite
different. The very interesting aspect
of this album is that lyrically they are very anti-Christian yet the lyrics go
in line with God. So it would seem that
for them the metaphysical essence of God does exist, but for them they give it
the name of Satan .
This, again, fits into the whole theory that I proffered earlier about
the ideology of being anti-Christian and yet still being in line with the word
of God. This is an easy achievement,
especially for those like me, since I do not view Christ
as bringing salvation to this world.
Rather he symbolizes corruption, deceit and many other terms that are
synonymous with the Christians outlook of Satan . Only this is taken from an inherently
different side and reference point that most Christians cannot even conceive
of.
Now, Deathspell Omega seems
to be intent on not confusing people with straight devil worship, because as
far as I can tell from the interview they are focusing mainly on a metaphysical
aspect of spiritual entities. I think
this warrants mentioning of some interesting research that I have done
recently, concerning higher grade genetics research, because this will segue
way into an analysis of another song.
It’s interesting to note that recently a lot of scientists have said,
based on their research, that they cannot see how there is not a God. I find this curious because for many years’
science and religion have been opposing forces and for a long time, even in
today’s society, many people cannot see how the two things can ever be
joined. Whatever the reason is, in the
twenty-first century, they appear to be converging. However, I personally believe they can and
Deathspell Omega seems to agree that on a metaphysical level the truth of our
world can be found. However, for
Deathspell Omega the bringer of that truth is Satan ,
for scientists their truth is found in science and factual observations. Deathspell Omega in my opinion seem to focus
mainly on a philosophical edge of the situation, however, I feel a bridge
joined between the philosophical and scientific would be a much stronger
argument for what they are trying to convey to the world. Now an interesting book, which I recently finished,
called “The Hidden Face of God” went into great detail how a human being is
created on the genetic level. Starting
from a single cell and growing into the multi-cellular organism that appears
upon birth. You see for mammals to be
created is a very complex event, especially the evolutionary aspects of the
human being. A lot of things have to
happen so that the human female body will not recognize the fetus as a
parasitic invader. Scientists view the
complex nature needed for programming the cells with such a vast amount of
information as irrefutable proof of God’s existence. Now it seems that both aspects of research
draw the same conclusions that there is a God.
Deathspell Omega, at no point, says there is no God and neither does the
scientific research. The part where the
philosophies split is that a greater majority of the scientists view this
amazing design of cells forming into a human to be a beautiful thing and come
from a loving God. Deathspell Omega,
like most Black Metal bands, views it as an abomination, which is why they
probably view the representation of God as Satan . It is no secret that the human fetus is by
definition a parasite while it is in its mother’s body. Anyway you want to look at it; we come into
this world born as parasites. The fetus
is forcing the mother’s body to chemically alter itself to support the life of
the fetus, if this did not happen the human species would’ve been extinct a
long time ago. So being born as
parasites, what can that mean of our metaphysical creator? Scientists see it as beauty, Black Metal
views it in disgust, yet nature controls all of us to a degree where we feel
compelled to reproduce. Personally I
believe it is a little bit of both aspects.
However, if one looks at the Cathar Text of the Gnostic Bible a very
scary revelation is revealed as to why Deathspell Omega would choose Satan as their God.
Now when one reads the
specific Cathar text called “The Gospel of the Secret Supper,” the reader
discovers that it was Satan who created this world and who also created
mankind. I will not subject you to the
details, for I would urge you to read the text yourself; I will post the
necessary Bibliography with ISBN numbers at the end so you may look it up
yourself. However, it was also Satan who tempted and brought mankind into sin. Now could it be that Satan
had intentionally designed mankind for a sinful nature as a supreme challenge
of the mind to overcome it and thus bring them closer to God? That remains to be said, but this text as well
as the rest of Gnostic Bible has been deemed heresy by the Catholic Church and
many other religious factions in Christianity.
This comes as no surprise, since it would be a painful revelation for
any of these religions to accept that Satan was the
creator of this world. It would also
explain further that Satan , upon tempting humanity
on a sexual level would be cast out of Heaven.
It would further explain the need for God to destroy the abominations;
however, taking pity upon on man, Noah ,
would see him as a shining light among a damned race. This is all very cryptic material and is not
easy to understand, especially on a metaphysical level. One thing Deathspell Omega does is they deal
with incredibly personal beliefs. Every
interpretation of the texts’ they reference is different, while I do believe my
interpretation to be the absolutely correct version; another person will view
their interpretation as the correct version.
This is possibly the point to many philosophical musings. Can the human mind conceive of a world where
each person has their own personal interpretation of life and after-life? This would surely fly in the face of the
organized religious factions across the world.
For, I would rather conceptualize a world based on aspects that cannot
be contained within any given organized religion. We are a free thinking species, the deities,
or deity, responsible for this creation is, no doubt, well aware of this fact
already. Furthermore, that could be the
challenge in itself, maybe one of the organized religions out there is the true
path and the challenge for the free thinking species is conformity. The latter I do not believe to be true,
because restrictions in many ways have never yielded much in terms of
philosophical truth, nor have they yielded anything for achievements of
knowledge.
The album, lyrically, starts
off from a mostly metaphysical analysis, but then transitions into humanity’s
role on this earth. I think their view
is best summed up in the following verses for “Jubilate Deo (O’ be Joyful in
the Lord)”:
“Organic procreation,
mind-intromission; there comes the salvation
Pubescent vaginas obstructed
with the redeemer’s holy essence
Humanity reduced to its
supreme worthlessness;
Children under His will,
Ethic fulfilled
Little children, praise the
Lord, Praise ye the Lord!
This is the day which He hath
made; all will rejoice and be glad in it
Born with the ability of
begetting
Only but One gift were she
granted
To excrete a new humanity
unwanted
Reluctantly she – woman –
loves the god of a creation within”
I believe most people will
view this as a section that is geared for being sexist or anti-women. This can typically be viewed as the incorrect
interpretation. Granted, it is no secret
that the Bible views women as secondary to men, for in one of the passages it
stated “the women’s master is her husband.” (Genesis 3:16) Though, I feel I should make note that in
current advanced genetic research, there have been found to be inherent differences
between the sexes on certain levels in terms of mental capacity. These levels have to do with brain and
functionality of the brain. People will
correctly point out that this is not the case for all women, but this is
speaking in terms of the majority of the female portion of our species. That being said for those of you out there
who think men and women are equal on all levels, I am sorry to disappoint you,
but the truth is that we are not exactly the same. In fact the faults of men are directly
complemented by a female’s major strengths, thus creating a perfect
partnership. Now from this point on in
the album it appears that their lyrics conceptually parallel that of a portion
of the Gnostic Bible called “The Exegesis of the Soul,” especially the song
“Carnal Malefactor.” The soul in this
reading is portrayed in the feminine and it discusses the prostitution of the
soul and the seeking of salvation. I
think the overall message of the passage is designed to make the reader wary of
such sexual temptations. However, from
the lyrical basis of Deathspell Omega it would appear that they believe there
is no other purpose. But if one
references their earlier lyrical aspects I would suspect that there is a
purposeful methodology behind the species.
Here is what I think the overall metaphysical nature of the female
aspect of our species means for us.
Upon man’s creation God saw
that man did not have someone truly befitting to help him in this new plane of
existence he found himself. So, God
created women a perfect compliment to man.
Both could help provide for each other on spiritual, emotional and even
a servitude oriented manner to each other.
Now a curious aspect comes into the fact that upon this creation he gave
the species the ability to copulate and thus reproduce. So is it a base fact that sexual temptation
is merely designed into the human system from birth. Possibly, but to point at women and say they
are the great temptation is a farcical notion in my opinion. “The Exegesis of the Soul” takes a very
different stand point; in this passage it is the men who tempt the women’s
soul. Through this journey of sexual
promiscuity of her soul she eventually finds salvation when her soul-mate
(called her “brother” in the actual passage, but if one thinks about it, a
soul-mate would be interpreted as something from one soul, therefore “brother”
is a very proper term to use in this instance) is given to her by God. I would take the stance that it is a more
powerful soul that can resist these forms of temptation. However, in the passage the woman was not
relieved of her whore-like suffering until she truly felt deep regret for her
past. At that time, God took pity upon
her and she was given her salvation. At
this point in time the bride-groom took her to the bed chamber and they were embraced
in true love making, not like the sexual transgressions she previously
experienced, which had no meaning behind them.
I would venture to guess that it is a powerful soul on the side of both
genders to resist such base needs as sex.
To embrace the higher metaphysical thinking and curiosity to the purpose
of existence takes a special person indeed. Upon this decision, it requires the
individual to resist sexual desire from every angle for the most part.
In an interesting
interpretation of the soul on a sexual level, which it seems is a major part of
the soul; if one reads Kabbalah some interesting revelations are made. I think it comes from a perspective where sex
is viewed as two souls joining to become one.
This would be the correct interpretation of a proper sexual act, if one
wants to look at it on a higher, more metaphysical level. The Ten
Sefirot
If one would look at the
species as a whole, mating is done a good portion of the time; obviously this
varies from couple to couple. Some
people far exceeding normal conceptions of sexual promiscuity and others are
achieving new feats of conservatism and chastity. If you believe in the truly spiritual side,
then you would view sex as an odious act for the most part, especially since
there is no real reason to increase the population of our species on the
planet. Someone of a higher intellect,
albeit seemingly tyrannical, could view this as producing yet more filth to
deal with on this planet. When, on the
other hand, it should be cleansed of those with poor spirit and poor
intellect. This is not a new
manifestation in the Black Metal genre, however, in order to perceive it by the
right thinkers is a wholly new basis. Most
people view the genre in terms of being simply anti-Christian or anti-God;
however, this is not such a clear cut case.
The genre is inherently anti-religion, any form of organized (emphasis
on organized) religion. In recent
statistical population studies, data has shown that most people who attend some
form of church score quite low on a test of spirituality. This has nothing to do with whether or not a
person can identify with spirituality or a higher order of conscious
thought. I find this to be a profound
statement about the worth of an organized religion. From this point of view I would be led to
believe that one who ponders religious philosophy on their own or in a group
with no one saying something is an ultimate truth would, in a sense, be better
served. If human need is for that to
seek spiritual connection with God, then attending an ordered church would in a
sense be the improper method with which to achieve divine influence. I will further present that there is an
ultimate spiritual truth, which most of mankind should be able to adhere
to. For within these studies of
spirituality it has been discovered that spirituality can be an inherited trait
amongst the species. This is a profound
development and showing further that within the human genome there are those
who can achieve higher spiritual perceptions than others, or so studies have
shown. Does this prove ESP or kinetic
abilities, not at all, but it can show that some people may have a greater
connection with a higher deity. In the end
this means that those people who flock to churches or those who preach at such
organized events are not the people with this connection. Those with the higher connection to the
underlying secrets of the universe are probably those like Vindsval of Blut Aus
Nord, Deathspell Omega, and me. It is
not merely something that can be easily understood, but anyone who knows feels
the way they feel. For those who do not
fully understand what this means, you may never know in your life-time. It is a sad trick of fate, but there may be
peoples out there who merely are not able to conceive of spiritual
connection. I realize that some readers
may interpret this as saying that God is not worth seeking because invariably
it is a cruel deity. This may be true to
some degree, but if you extrapolate this perception you may find other
truths. I recommend extensive research
in this area for those who are curious towards spirituality.
Deathspell Omega identify
that the truth of the metaphysical comes from a blending of philosophies and
theologies so that they will converge at some point. I, personally, believe this is also the
correct interpretation. True knowledge
cannot be sought amongst one religion, it’s too restrictive. Because by human nature, many people want power
and by holding knowledge, that gives them power. Thus within any religion, the truth is
restricted to the general populace. Look
at how many years the Vatican Church of Satan Church of Satan Church
of Satan
I do not want to confuse
people into thinking that gratuitous sex is the only aspect of society that
mankind would have to overcome. Some of
the species feels that higher thinking is achieved through drug use as well. Wouldn’t the use of drugs be another aspect
of temptation? In my opinion it would,
because there are those out there who believe and do achieve this higher
metaphysical state without the “help” of such natural or artificial substances. I posit that this is the correct aspect and
true pathway to God. Only one who is
truly of higher development will be able to view and understand it with their
mind, without debilitating themselves with such a folly of substance abuse. This is not a platform where I am preaching
my anti-drug beliefs, but it is merely a message for those who think drug use
condones higher thinking. It does not,
however, like many other Black Metal bands; I think drugs are good because it
kills off the human population faster, especially those who feel the need to
indulge in such a fallible activity.
Upon speaking with Black Metal bands that hold spirituality in high
regards, I have found that the use of drugs is not one of their methods for
influencing their musical creativity.
For use of drugs to find a spiritual path will only lead to a
pseudo-spiritual world, one that has absolutely no reference to reality. A world that is as farce as the substance one
would use to reach it. This message is
meant for those who understand the purpose of higher knowledge and no one
else. I feel that many will scoff at
what I have written and a select few will see it as an enlightening
moment. Others will merely agree, and
with any luck the greater majority of my readers will agree. In a further addition to this topic, I have
read recently that such studies have been made concerning substance abuse and
spirituality. Those people who are
naturally predisposed to being spiritual have more of a chemical interaction
between monoamines in their cerebrum; furthermore, this can be mapped back
within their genetic code. It really
makes one ponder as to the purpose behind all this in nature, since it is not a
very necessary trait of survival in terms of Darwinism. Such an ethos would pan out that we all have
a greater purpose in this world and maybe some are more “chosen” than
others. Whatever the reason, it is
difficult to ignore such facts from these recent discoveries. However, the use of drugs will overload the
transfer of certain monoamines and possibly give an illusory sense of a desired
spiritual state. I cannot emphasize
enough that this state of mind is merely fleeting and not a permanent
state. Though, a study at Harvard
involving hallucinogens did have a lasting effect on the subjects in terms of
fond memories. It did not in any way
shape or form increase their feelings of spiritual connection to a greater
power for the rest of their lives. It
presented them with a feeling of ultimate connectedness in that given point of
time, but while under this influence they could not function normally. Thus, searching for connectivity with this
method would lead one down yet another dead end, for the effects are not long
lived. Studies have shown that there are
people who experience this feeling of connectivity with the universe at all
times and these systems in their brain have the chemical interactions
preprogrammed into their natural system.
After having read all the
aspects of the metaphysical influences for this album I will now discuss what I
had last mentioned on the musical review.
For me this album, most of the time, doesn’t feel like there is a higher
power watching over it. By that, I mean,
it does not feel like there is any tangible spiritual essence. Now an album that, to me, felt like it had a
truly spiritual essence throughout it was Blut Aus Nord Blut Aus Nord Blut
Aus Nord Blut Aus
Nord
This album is wholly designed
to bring the spiritual essence of God to mankind and Deathspell Omega’s chosen
medium to convey this message is music.
This album is designed to make you think and question the current
beliefs any human holds. Even those who
may have already found for themselves that ultimate spiritual truth or even
those who are inherently atheists may find some merit in this work, rather than
just some enjoyable background noise. I also
agree with Deathspell Omega that only a select few people out there who are
ready to understand this album, will truly understand and appreciate what they
are trying to do. It is an incredible
art form, as they said Satan is “l’art total.” Here it is for all to be mystified with. I only hope that I have managed to touch upon
some of the underlying concepts found within this album and managed to
represent them in truthful manner, for it is not my desire to deceive in
anyway. Rather my goal is to instill a
desire for further education and further knowledge work. With any luck, I will have done them justice
in my interpretation. In retrospect of
writing this I realize the concept of doing “works” as the first songs states
is a major underlying aspect to this album.
I hope that this essay can be viewed as one of those great works. However, I think it will be heavily used
throughout the trilogy and that is why I have left it out of my in depth
analysis. That and it would probably
take another eight pages to write about, thus I have left it out for a future
review. For doing “works” whether it is
for God or for spiritual advancement in general are works nonetheless. I believe I have referenced the proper
material and I hope I have influenced anyone who reads this to find themselves
looking through the books I reference below.
For while I believe the human species to be quite disgusting in many
aspects, I believe there are those out there who are ready for a higher
existence, those who feel that the human species is better than our base
needs. These are the individuals who are
most likely targeted for higher spiritual development. With them they give a certain perspective of
the world as being somewhat graceful and beauteous. I realize this is a rather optimistic outlook
on the species, but notice also that I am talking about a small percentage of
the population. As far as it would seem
for me to be a genocidal madman, I do think most of the human race should be
killed off. Even though, I will state
that there are certain degrees of beauty that would steady such a hand if
holding a proverbial genocidal switch.
But maybe that is the point; there is a need for this sort of balance. Regardless, I believe the introduction to
Behemoth’s “Thelema 6” actually said it best, and I will end this review with
that quote: “We believe most of the human race should be killed off, because it
is unworthy of the gift of life.”
I have decided upon a
different Bibliographic method, I will list title of the books first, then the
author, year and then ISBN
Bibliography:
The New American Bible, Saint Joseph
Demonology and Devil Lore
Volume 1, Moncure
Daniel Conway
Demonology and Devil Lore
Volume 2, Moncure
Daniel Conway
Etz Hayim, The Jewish
Publication Society, 2001, 0-8276-0712-1
The Gnostic Bible, Editors
Barnstone & Meyer , 2003, ISBN:
1-57062-242-6
The God Gene ,
Dean Hamer
Hidden Face of God, Gerald L. Schroeder
Parasite Rex, Carl Zimmer
Tanakh (or Torah), Jewish
Publication Society, 2000, 0-8276-0697-4
A Guide to the Zohar, Arthur Green
The Zohar Volume 1, Daniel C. Matt
The Zohar Volume 2, Daniel C. Matt
Northern Heritage, 2002
Genre: Black Metal
1. From Unknown Lands of Desolation
2. Torture and Death
3. Desecration Master
4. Lethal Baptism
5. Succubus of All Vices
6. Inquisitors of Satan
7. Decadence
After a full-lengths worth of split material, Deathspell Omega finally give us a proper full-length. Even though "Infernal Battles" is classed as a full-length, lets be honest, it was four tracks with their demo tagged on at the end. Here, though, we get seven new songs entirely! If you've been following Deathspell Omega's career up until now, you'll essentially know what to expect from the project.
While, I feel some of the split material is actually stronger than the songs on "Inquisitors of Satan", that still doesn't make this a weak album. Compared against a lot of other bands trying to perform in this style, Deathspell Omega are a clear cut above the rest in everything they do. While there is no song that can match the caliber of "Insanity Supreme", "Desecration Master" sure does come close! They certainly maintain their ability to create some really catchy sections throughout the album. This is only enhanced by the slower far more driving drum beats underneath them. "Inquisitors of Satan" really manages to stay true to the old and harsh style in feeling, but I think it fails to establish that really immense atmosphere of some of the songs found on the splits. I think if they had managed to preserve that onto the full-length amidst the driving and catchy sections this would have been one of the most impressive releases around. "Inquisitors of Satan" is still a very good album and I certainly enjoy it for what it is, I just think it could have been a little better, but perhaps they were going for a far more straightforward approach to things. Those interesting haunting riffs like we hear on the title track are just too few and far between. Sadly this is Shaxul's last vocal performance with Deathspell Omega. I will, certainly, be very sad to see him depart, as he is one of my favorite vocalists. His voice just has this wonderfully unique quality to it that... well, just isn't matched anywhere else out there. Luckily, we'll get to see him turn up in the even more incredible band Annthennath, which does continue on the raw atmospheric style and probably what I truly wanted early Deathspell Omega to actually evolve into.
If you're a fan of those long gone halcyon days of Black Metal, these early Deathspell Omega releases are some of the finest around. They actually add a little to the older sound and that, I think, is what truly makes this material special and why it is so highly regarded by a lot of the old Black Metal fans like myself.
End All Life Productions, 2001
Genre: Black Metal
Mütiilation:
1. Beyond the Decay of Time and Flies
Deathspell Omega:
2. Insanity Supreme
3. For Fire and Void Become One
Side Mütiilation: ...coming eventually...
Side Deathspell Omega:
Deathspell Omega is really working with legendary projects for being such a new band at this time, this just gives you some sense of how strong and compelling their music is. This was originally released on 10" vinyl and limited to 400 hand-numbered copies. Sadly, I was never able to obtain a copy of this, as by the following year all of these were gone. Fast forward over ten years later and the prices for this are simply too much to bear at this time. So, it looks like this will never become a physical resident of my archives.
Deathspell Omega submit two tracks for this split and its even more sad that I can't get a copy of this, because "Insanity Supreme" is one of the best Deathspell Omega songs. They really manage to harness this blend of their usual catchy and raw style with this overwhelmingly haunting elements. It really makes the songs exceptional and stand above a lot of other Black Metal out there today. There's a riff on here that reminds me quite a bit of "Extinction of the Weak" and that's certainly nothing to be ashamed of. Deathspell Omega closes with "For Fire and the Void Become One" and this song is a bit more straightforward. It's got a far more sorrowful feel overall and feels even more like and older Black Metal song, but they still maintain their hard driving rhythms. In the face of "Insanity Supreme" this track feels a little more weak, up until the middle part with the feedback and that illustrious guitar line really setting the stage for some immense atmosphere. I almost wish they would design a whole song around this kind of passage, since they really do an incredible job of constructing that musical space.
In the end, the Deathspell Omega songs are incredible... as usual. I truly love their take on Black Metal. It feels raw and old, yet new and fresh at the same time. I'm not sure they're even doing anything all that different, it just sounds amazing in the grand scheme of the genre.
Northern Heritage, 2003
Genre: Black Metal
Clandestine Blaze:
1. Will to Kill
2. Blasphemous Lust
3. Raping the Innocent
4. Genocide Operation
Deathspell Omega:
5. Bestial Orgies
6. The Suicide Curse
7. Seal of Perversion
Now after hearing “Infernal Battles” it is obvious that I would seek out all the things that Deathspell Omega had to offer. I even found it worth it to procure their split albums regardless as to how bad the other band sounds. I’m truly glad that Deathspell Omega is the type of band that can live up to this test. The split released prior to this one was with Moonblood and as of the time I write this is currently unavailable. So this is their second split and it is with Clandestine Blaze.
Clandestine Blaze is the type of band I think the world can completely overlook and feel that it hasn’t missed anything. For instance the Clandestine Blaze tracks boast being recorded on an analog 4-track. Darkthrone does this and I believe Darkthrone manages to get way better production. So there’s no excuse for this. There is also no excuse for how terrible they play. The music fluctuates between being on time and off time with itself. It’s possibly one of the more annoying things around. However, it’s not nearly as bad as the Burzum demo, which I listened to tonight as well. So by comparison Clandestine Blaze is genius. At least their tape doesn’t simulate the Doppler Effect against my will. As song structuring goes, Clandestine Blaze is quite boring. The songs are very uninteresting and are the epitome of general Black Metal. Just when I thought they were going to play something good by opening “Genocide Operation” with a great riff. They then proceeded to implement the Judas Iscariot method by playing it for too long and way too many times until it became annoying. Needless to say that I was quite perturbed to see that I would have to skip through Clandestine Blaze every time I wanted to listen to these Deathspell Omega tracks.
Now, moving right along to everyone’s sole purpose for purchasing this album: Deathspell Omega. I honestly would have preferred three Deathspell Omega mini-CD’s over three splits with only marginally good bands. The songs by Deathspell Omega are very similar to those found on the “Infernal Battles.” Now thankfully they are not akin to the “Disciples of the Ultimate Void” demo portion of the “Infernal Battles” album. The tracks have excellent production and are played with the same passion and feel. In fact I would rather have a full length album of all the songs produced in this fashion. The Deathspell Omega tracks alone make this more than worth listening to at some point. If you want to read what I think of this particular style just read my review of “Infernal Battles” for a more in depth assessment.
So in the end the Deathspell Omega songs make this more than worth owning. The drawback comes from the fact that Clandestine Blaze is on here. It’s not that Clandestine Blaze has no ability to play at all; it’s just that if their drummer played more than one beat or the music was more interesting overall that would make a big difference. When putting both these bands together Deathspell Omega just eclipses Clandestine Blaze so much that it feels as if the listener just wasted their time listening to Clandestine Blaze. Despite my assessment of Clandestine Blaze’s music, Deathspell Omega fans should consider this a must have release. Their songs are a little different this time around because I felt they were more epic in a sense. The tracks are dragged out for a longer than expected time, but Deathspell Omega knows exactly how to keep a listeners interest without boring them too much. Nor do they repeat the same “good” riff constantly throughout the song until it begins to suck. Consider this a worthwhile purchase in the great scheme of things.
End All Life Productions, 2000
Genre: Black Metal
Moonblood: Sob a Lua do Bode
1. Forgotten Spells in the Forests Nocturnal
2. A Silent Dream of Impurity
3. Bells of Apocalypse
4. I Hail the Night
Deathspell Omega: Demoniac Vengeance
5. Follow the Dark Path
6. Morbid Rituals
7. Yells from the Abyss
Side Moonblood: here
Side Deathspell Omega:
This split is basically a dream come true for me. Two of my top favorite bands on one release. Now, I can't remember which came out first "Infernal Battles" or this, but judging by the production, I feel like this is higher quality, so it probably came out after. I know the Moonblood material was supposed to be released elsewhere, but that fell through, and I'm so glad that Deathspell Omega picked up their side of the split and released all of this together! This comes on a beautiful gatefold vinyl limited to 350 hand-numbered copies, of which I own #282. This also features one of my favorite album covers ever made.
This is, truly, a wonderful collection of tracks. They really build on the style laid on the "Infernal Battles" half of their debut. However, these tracks seem to be a little cleaner on the production end, albeit they are still nice and raw old sounding Black Metal. Nothing is overproduced here. One thing I've always been enamored with Deathspell Omega is their ability to compose rather catchy sounding riffs, but have this ugly and awkward feel to them. It's similar to what Mütiilation has been able to pull off over the years, but Deathspell Omega isn't as sorrowful sounding or nearly as dissonant. With Shaxul's signature rasp giving life to the songs, we truly have some wonderful material and one of the most legendary splits ever released. They bring three more wonderful songs that could have easily been included on their debut.
Whenever I revisit this old Deathspell Omega material, I am so sad that this era of theirs ended so quickly. Despite their influence on the later scene, no one has really come close to composing in the same fashion they used to. Highly recommended listening.
Northern Heritage, 2000
Genre: Black Metal
Infernal Battles:
1. The Victory of Impurity
2. Drink the Devil's Blood3. Extinction of the Weak
4. Sacrilegious Terror
Disciples of the Ultimate Void:
5. Raping Human Dignity
6. The Ancient Presence Revealed
7. Knowledge of the Ultimate Void
8. Death's Reign (Human Futility)
After the demise of Hirilorn, Shaxul and Harsjarl moved on to form a more pure Black Metal band called Deathspell Omega. This band has not played any shows to my knowledge and when this album was first released in LP format in the year 2000 they limited it to two-hundred copies and had no intentions of ever selling another one. According to my sources, what ended up happening was the band got tired of seeing bootlegs of their records being sold on Ebay for exorbitant amounts of money, so they decided to actually print a compact disc version in 2003. Every record distribution company I am in contact with is constantly selling out of their entire discography, which is very impressive for such a new band.
“Infernal Battles” is their debut album and it is essentially viewed in two parts. The first four songs, “Infernal Battles,” are new studio tracks while the second part, also four songs, is their original demo entitled “Disciples of the Ultimate Void.” The demo material is marginally interesting, it is a demo with quite poor quality, so what is one to expect? It actually sounds more like a rehearsal recording. The songs are good songs, but they are just standard raw Black Metal compositions. I personally found very little merit in these four songs and had this been the only thing I heard from Deathspell Omega I probably would not have been as interested as I am today. Though, amongst the demo the song “The Ancient Presence Revealed” has a much thrashier feel to it, feeling a bit more reminiscent of Gorgoroth at times. After hearing the “Infernal Battles” aspect of Deathspell Omega prior to the demo it really stands out and seems out of place in their overall style of Black Metal. The demo quality is raw, with the guitar feedback being the opening aspect of almost every track. There are some people who really enjoy that recording quality, so you may find a lot more merit in it than I do. However, the guitar tone is so scratchy and hisses that at points it is sort of boring/annoying to listen to. The vocals are sort of in the background, but you basically hear them well enough. They've really improved a lot from these days, but we can hear glimpses of the more interesting style they would develop over time. There are hints have that catchier style they include in a few sections of the "Infernal Battles' piece. The band was clearly still feeling out the direction they wanted to go in.
The “Infernal Battles” aspect of this album is where things really start to impress the listener. Granted this is what you hear first, so it makes sense that you will be impressed right off the bat. The production is a little better than that of modern Darkthrone, but the songs have that cold feel to them throughout the album. Now they sound nothing like Darkthrone, in my opinion, from a song writing stand point. In fact, I honestly would rather listen to Deathspell Omega over Darkthrone, but that’s because Deathspell Omega have a certain essence in their guitar tone. Just listen to the feel of the song “Extinction of the Weak” and you will understand what I’m talking about. The song has this almost ethereal essence as it comes to a close. “Infernal Battles” opens with “Victory of Impurity” and it’s nothing complex. In reality I believe Deathspell Omega’s simplicity is what gives them something special to their sound. Progressing from that point in the song they have some thrash types of elements in riffs here and there. For the most part the guitar work is very ominous sounding and has fairly hypnosis inducing effect on the listener. The most favored aspect to this is that this is not raw Black Metal. In fact I found the recording quality to be very desirable. I can hear absolutely everything that’s going on in the song and pick up the subtle hints in differences between the lead and rhythm guitars. Each of these four tracks featured on the “Infernal Battles” aspect of the album are masterfully written. I’m not sure why the band would ever keep something this brilliant so obscure, but alas they did. However, they could not keep it for long though because people did recognize their inherently natural songwriting talent.
The closest thing we come to a blast beat on this recording is on the opening of “Drink the Devil’s Blood,” which is about as fast as it gets for Deathspell Omega. I think one of the most impressive aspects of this is that while the guitars are playing something very hypnotic, the drums manage to make it still sound rather catchy. This is an impressive thing in my opinion because it doesn’t seem like something that would work very well when trying to convey it to someone conceptually. The vocal work found on the newer recordings is, at times, monotonous, but the music varies so much that to hear the same vocal style over the different aspects offers a seemingly different rendition to the songs every time. There is some vocal variation here and there, but for the greater majority of the songs it is a very similar vocal pattern. However, I found their vocalist to be fairly unique in terms of Black Metal. He does not have the typical styled Black Metal vocals and it is tough to explain why exactly. All I can say is that you will have to listen to it to fully understand what I am saying. Though, at a first glance many will probably disagree with that statement.
The interesting aspect of these re-releases is that in the booklet most of the lyrics have been blotched out. Apparently the lyrics that are present on all these early works were not very serious for the band. It’s as if the band has said that in the writing process the lyrics were not that important for them at this stage of their existence. I can see why this would happen since Deathspell Omega was never really planning on releasing any of this to the masses. They probably did not spend much of their time taking care to write meaningful lyrics. It also makes sense that they would desire them stricken from their record since they were working on an incredible three part work lyrically. Clearly the members put a lot of time and effort into the new lyrical works and it would completely dwarf their more ignorant lyrical concepts. So for the albums that were released to the masses we are left wondering what Deathspell Omega didn’t want us to see.
Finally, this is an incredible Black Metal release. I think most of the raw Black Metal fans in the world will appeal to this release, mainly because they will enjoy the demo tracks. However, I think even the fans of the highest quality Black Metal will enjoy the first four songs. For it is the first four tracks that are truly amazing.
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