Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 91/2/10
Like a monster rising out of the shadowy depths, the colossus and the titanic seem to feed on the range of emotions given off by all who come into contact with it. However there is one giant from behind the former Iron Curtain that could put The Green Knight of Arthurian legend or the flawed destroyer of Grendel to shame.
Behemoth have come striding across the land to send quake after quake of punishing guitar and guarded bass to show that whilst many have been raving about the emergence of a sizzling scene of Metal from places such as France and the abundance of great work that comes out Norway and Sweden for example, There is still this superb band and a quality of music that never lets anyone down.
The Satanist may sound like the type of title you would give to a Victorian melodrama or even a Hammer House of Horror’s production. What it inspires in literary terms it gives more than enough bite, more than plenty of chucks of flesh riveting and heart inducing moments in which to make sure that the music remains loud, undisturbed and with just that little glimmer of light poking through from under the door to really relish what you are hearing.
Adam “Nergal” Darski’s lyrics and growls of darkness sound magnificent throughout the album, one of the rare moments when a band seem to be delivering their finest work to date and because all because the vocalist truly believes in the performance, that the album is much more than a set of songs tied together with weaved spells or even frayed gaffa tape. It is almost impossible to herald any particular track off the album as they all stand out but Messe Noire, In the Absence ov Light (Sic) and the final blistering moment on the album O Father O Satan O Sun! should be more than enough to get your ears into a position of readiness for what is about to come.
There are so many great things, events and people to have come out of Poland, Lech Walesa, Dog In The Fog Beer, the tremendous work ethic and never give up spirit that for Behemoth to sit proudly in amongst them all is testimony to the nation as a whole. You might not like their music, the lyrics may grate on less endowed ears but nonetheless they are a band of striking proportions, of creative ability and sensational musicianship. Ten albums down the line and Behemoth still have this unnerving ability to shake the very foundations on which you comfortably perch and make you hang on for dear life to any piece of ground that you can mentally scramble to.
Tremendous stuff!
Ian D. Hall