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Behemoth - The Satanist review



Reviewer:
6.0

1013 users:
8.47
Band: Behemoth
Album: The Satanist
Release date: February 2014


Disc I
01. Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel
02. Furor Divinus
03. Messe Noire
04. Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer
05. Amen
06. The Satanist
07. Ben Sahar
08. In The Absence Ov Light
09. O Father O Satan O Sun!
10. Ludzie Wschodu [Siekiera cover] [Australian bonus]

Disc II [DVD] [deluxe box set version]
01. Live Barbarossa
    1 - Intro
    2 - Ov Fire And The Void
    3 - Demigod
    4 - Moonspell Rites
    5 - Conquer All
    6 - Christians To The Lions
    7 - The Seed Ov I
    8 - Alas, Lord Is Upon Me
    9 - Decade Of ΘΕΡΙΟΝ
    10 - At The Left Hand Ov God
    11 - Slaves Shall Serve
    12 - Chant For ΕΣΧΗΑΤΟΝ 2000
    13 - 23 (The Youth Manifesto)
    14 - Lucifer
02. The Satanist: Oblivion

Not too many bands could throw a spoken-word, Kenny G sax muzak thing into the middle of a song called "In The Absence Ov Light" and not get laughed away into obscurity. Behemoth can get away with shit like that. They're just too cool to be dismissed. They sound cool and, with a theatrical sense that rivals well over half a Lady Gaga, they LOOK cool. I mean, I'm not gay, but I'd let Nergal and Orion double team me if they still want to.

The Satanist hasn't changed any of that. The already slightly precarious balance between their style and the substance of their music has changed. Since Thelema they've been making some of the most vicious and furious blackened, anti-Christian death metal around, all with an extravagant dramatic flair. With Evangelion they started emphasizing the evil mood creation bits and the ambient bits of their tunes more than they had before. And that wasn't necessarily a bad thing when it came down to it, but the sheer testosterone of what they'd done on their earlier discs did feel a little watered down.

They did what they do and made it work on Evangelion. "Lucifer" is boring, but goddamn is "Shemhamforash" a neck breaker. That balance is almost completely gone here. The Satanist feels a lot like a bunch of "Lucifer"s. Sure, there's still some DM fury, but it seems to come secondary to all the build-ups. And while the build-ups can sound juicy, they never lead to any kind of exploding that's to be expected from the band that gave us The Apostasy not too long ago.

The extreme bits on this get boring quick. Every time you think, "shit, this is about to get good," songs will peter out and fall back into "just wait for it" mode. It either goes back to what feels a lot like filler, or the faster riffs are bland and melodramatic enough that you'll pine for any of their earlier albums, even the overrated ones like Demigod.

None of this is to say these guys are sounding bad necessarily. The mix is robust and the guys still play tightly; Inferno is still distractingly good at what he does and now the bass gets accented more, so Orion's chops are more audible, Nergal's voice is as powerful as ever, and so on. What they've put together here is tedious enough to surprise even their casual fans, in other words. It sounds like the kind of stuff made for expensive music videos, not the other way around.

Highlight: "Amen"





Written on 12.02.2014 by Wormdrink's real name is George and he's an American.

Guest review by
flightoficarus
Rating:
10
What's my favorite scary movie? The Shining. With its subtle, psychological terror and slow-build that only Kubrick can pull off, it's a masterpiece. Sure, I get down with the gore-ridden creature features too. Everything from Evil Dead to Friday the 13th is cool in my book. Why is this relevant? Aliens. Okay, now you are more confused. Let me elaborate further. I think a lot of long-time fans come to a Behemoth album expecting a certain level of violence. Demigod, Thelema.6, Zos Kia Cultus; these classics are the "Aliens" of the Behemoth discography. Explosions, flame-throwers, disembowelment, "Game over man, game over!" I'm right with you, popcorn ready. The Satanist, on the other hand, is "Alien." Swarms of xenomorphs are replaced with a single, lurking threat in the shadows. The emphasis is on tension as each innocent is picked off one by one and dragged to their grim (and unseen) demise. While both styles are equally valid, I find the imagination to be a far darker place than anything directly fed to my senses.

Read more ››
published 09.02.2015 | Comments (42)


Comments page 2 / 8

Comments: 215   Visited by: 1026 users
12.02.2014 - 17:31
tea[m]ster
Au Pays Natal
Written by Guest on 12.02.2014 at 15:28

you could land a helicopter on that forehead.


You, young man just won the internet.
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rekt
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12.02.2014 - 17:33
!J.O.O.E.!
Account deleted
Wow, double-barrelled compliment on my comment there
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12.02.2014 - 17:36
tea[m]ster
Au Pays Natal
Written by Guest on 12.02.2014 at 17:33

Wow, double-barrelled compliment on my comment there


Yea I noticed that too, lol.
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rekt
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12.02.2014 - 17:43
Rating: 9
boo-boo

Now I see what was meant by "storm" and "ass-hats".
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World won't end today - it's already tomorrow in Australia.
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12.02.2014 - 17:45
Auntie Sahar
Drone Empress
Also, I'm betting that relatively shortly there'll be another guest review of this album up lavishly praising it and giving it something like a 9.5
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I am the Magician and the Exorcist. I am the axle of the wheel, and the cube in the circle. “Come unto me” is a foolish word: for it is I that go.

~ II. VII
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12.02.2014 - 17:53
Rating: 9
pkillerjp

I never understood the overwhelming embracing of these guys at all. Always sounded forced, overblown, and boring to me, with a really cheesy evil gimmick that just doesn't work for them.
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12.02.2014 - 17:59
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Even though I personally really like "Lucifer" and welcomed an album that seemingly took on that style throughout, and would even rate this a full point higher, I still agree with this review. It points out exactly what's wrong with this album that so many people apparently either aren't aware of or just don't care about: finish.

As others have already stated, the build-up and establishing of momentum is obvious (and well-executed), but from there the songs tend to trail off. Rather than wrapping up an idea with a strong closing segment, they just nod off listlessly. It's pretty annoying because most of the opening sections are enticing and powerful. Oh well.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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12.02.2014 - 18:05
Rating: 10
LascaillesShroud

For some reason I couldn't help but laugh when I saw the score
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12.02.2014 - 18:22
Rating: 9
Rupert

I really like this album, and I like Demigod even more. I found the ones in between to be seriously lacking inspiration, just a shitfest of powerful production.

So obviously your review is completely wrong because your opinion is not aligned with mine.
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12.02.2014 - 18:34
Rating: 6
Rulatore

Written by Rupert on 12.02.2014 at 18:22

So obviously your review is completely wrong because your opinion is not aligned with mine.

Wow, that was harsh
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12.02.2014 - 19:09
Lit.
Account deleted
Written by Slyfang on 12.02.2014 at 16:41

What a lame review

Doesn't make it any less true.
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12.02.2014 - 19:24
R Lewis

This was the first Behemoth album I really liked. It was to be expected that the Staff would have bashed it. Oh well.
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We could be so much more than we are. Stop.
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12.02.2014 - 19:31
Rating: 7
Hex_Omega
Gem Seeker
Written by Unhealer on 12.02.2014 at 15:16

So this is definitely Daniell + users vs. the rest of the MS staff + elite users

Fixed

Written by Daniell on 12.02.2014 at 13:46

What storm?

Just read some comments
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12.02.2014 - 19:46
Rating: 9
Daniell
_爱情_
Written by Troy Killjoy on 12.02.2014 at 17:59

As others have already stated, the build-up and establishing of momentum is obvious (and well-executed), but from there the songs tend to trail off. Rather than wrapping up an idea with a strong closing segment, they just nod off listlessly. It's pretty annoying because most of the opening sections are enticing and powerful. Oh well.


I thought the opposite. I welcomed the general slow pace of the album. As brilliant as Behemoth are when they're at warp speed, a slow album for a change is very welcome.
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12.02.2014 - 19:48
Rating: 9
Daniell
_爱情_
Quote:
Written by Daniell on 12.02.2014 at 13:46

What storm?

Just read some comments


I got your point immediately. My intention was to emphasize that I'm going to weather the storm without getting caught in it.

I have absolutely no problem with opinions that are different than mine, as long as those opinions aren't biased.
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12.02.2014 - 20:36
Rating: 9
Fallen Ghost
Craft Beer Geek
I'm not agreeing with this review. Just out of curiosity: Is the reviewer a Behemoth fan? I have never liked them actually, but this album is ridiculously good! (IMO). Is this more likable for people who aren't that used to the older material?
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12.02.2014 - 20:46
Rating: 10
LascaillesShroud

Written by Fallen Ghost on 12.02.2014 at 20:36

I'm not agreeing with this review. Just out of curiosity: Is the reviewer a Behemoth fan? I have never liked them actually, but this album is ridiculously good! (IMO). Is this more likable for people who aren't that used to the older material?


It seems to make non-Behemoth listeners fans of the album, and is pretty polarizing otherwise between current Behemoth fans.
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12.02.2014 - 20:55
Rating: 9
Carrion Misery

I like every song on the album. After listening to the CD more than 10 times, each song absolutely has it's own personality. Anyone who says all the songs sound like the first track or Lucifer, clearly didn't listen to the CD. I appreciate The Satanist in it's entirety due to actual song writing, the dark as fuck atmosphere and musical execution.
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? Carrion Misery
www.mournspire.com | Two-Man Death Doom Project
Full album streaming
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12.02.2014 - 21:00
Rating: 9
Fallen Ghost
Craft Beer Geek
Written by LascaillesShroud on 12.02.2014 at 20:46

Written by Fallen Ghost on 12.02.2014 at 20:36

I'm not agreeing with this review. Just out of curiosity: Is the reviewer a Behemoth fan? I have never liked them actually, but this album is ridiculously good! (IMO). Is this more likable for people who aren't that used to the older material?


It seems to make non-Behemoth listeners fans of the album, and is pretty polarizing otherwise between current Behemoth fans.


Yeah that's what I had an impression of as well.
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12.02.2014 - 21:10
Rating: 9
Daniell
_爱情_
Written by Carrion Misery on 12.02.2014 at 20:55

I like every song on the album. After listening to the CD more than 10 times, each song absolutely has it's own personality. Anyone who says all the songs sound like the first track or Lucifer, clearly didn't listen to the CD. I appreciate The Satanist in it's entirety due to actual song writing, the dark as fuck atmosphere and musical execution.


Well said. Your words pretty much sum up what I think.

But to some people it'll suck, because the songs aren't fast enough. I remember people complaining about Slayer's South of Heaven in a similar way.
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12.02.2014 - 21:40
Rating: 7
Hex_Omega
Gem Seeker
Written by Daniell on 12.02.2014 at 21:10

But to some people it'll suck, because the songs aren't fast enough.

Evangelion is also quite slow, slower than The Apostasy or Demigod. And Zos Kia Cultus also contains few slower songs. I completely don't care if something is very fast or very slow. I can listen to Necrophagist and than to Ahab. What I don't like about The Satanist is songwriting and lack of originality. 'Hey lets put some random riffs together' thats what I feel (or rather hear) when I am listening to some of the songs on this album. Songwriting is just too random for me, thats why this is not my favourite Behemoth album. Of course production is cool, Nergal vocals are also cool, but everything that is on this album was on previous albums.
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12.02.2014 - 22:33
Rating: 6
wormdrink414

Written by Fallen Ghost on 12.02.2014 at 20:36

I'm not agreeing with this review. Just out of curiosity: Is the reviewer a Behemoth fan? I have never liked them actually, but this album is ridiculously good! (IMO). Is this more likable for people who aren't that used to the older material?

The only reason I ccan think of that would prompt me to listen to this ever again is the fact that I am a fan of theirs.

And this does have some solid moments (I shit on In the Absence ov Light, but when it bangs back into gear after the spoken-word stuff it's not bad at all), but it just doesn't do anything close to what The Apostasy and Zos Kia did and do for me. Not consistently at least. It's tedious.
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12.02.2014 - 22:40
Rating: 9
ArianUndead

Poor review. this is so bad that i still think it's a troll bait.
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12.02.2014 - 22:44
!J.O.O.E.!
Account deleted
Written by ArianUndead on 12.02.2014 at 22:40

Poor review. this is so bad that i still think it's a troll bait.

What's wrong with it?
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12.02.2014 - 22:45
Rating: 9
Butters49

I loved the song Lucifer, much more so than Shemhamforash.... which is probably why I disagree with this review so much.
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"Sataaaaaaaaan. Yeah yeah!"
-King Diamond
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12.02.2014 - 22:46
Rating: 7
Coolingsrock

This won't come close to passing Aenaon on my 2014 list.
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12.02.2014 - 23:24
Rating: 10
LascaillesShroud

Written by Coolingsrock on 12.02.2014 at 22:46

This won't come close to passing Aenaon on my 2014 list.


It did for me, by 3%. The Aenaon release is wicked as hell though
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13.02.2014 - 00:03
Papa_Ray

I think this is a great album. That said, it took several listens to grow on me. Nergal sounds better than he has in years. I'm so glad he scaled back the overproduced vocal layering horseshit he's been up to for the last several albums.
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13.02.2014 - 01:07
Rating: 9
blackmamba

6??? hahahaha. Get yourself a new set of ears pal, maybe then you'll be able to write a decent review
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13.02.2014 - 01:08
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Written by blackmamba on 13.02.2014 at 01:07
6??? hahahaha. Get yourself a new set of ears pal, maybe then you'll be able to write a decent review

I think the review is actually well-written, but given your views on this album I can see why you dislike the rating here.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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