Walpurgis Rites - Hexenwahn
~ Release group by Belphegor
Album
Relationships
| Wikipedia: | en: Walpurgis Rites – Hexenwahn [info] |
|---|---|
| Discogs: | https://www.discogs.com/master/209998 [info] |
| reviews: | https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/35vh [info] |
| Wikidata: | Q3036318 [info] |
CritiqueBrainz Reviews
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The eighth studio album from this veteran Austrian outfit looks set to continue their fine run of form, although it's unlikely to take their career up a notch. It's yet another solid album which, as we've come to expect from them, breaks no new ground.
Belphegor specialise in a blend of black metal and death metal styles known - logically enough - as blackened death metal. As with all extreme variants of heavy metal, both black metal and death metal consist of the aspects of metal you know and love amplified and exaggerated to the point of severe aural suffering. Bands like Belphegor make the most intense moments of acts like Metallica and Slayer sound about as harsh as the Lighthouse Family.
Switching between rasping and growling, the vocals of frontman Helmuth render his words an indecipherable noise. Guitarist Morluch, meanwhile, displays a keen ear for minor key melody, despite playing with such fearsome speed. The pair's sensory assault is underpinned by the inhuman pace of drummer Nefastus. Ultra-fast drumming is a hallmark of much extreme metal, and this guy is right on the limit.
Heavy metal's obsession with Satanic and occult themes is as old as the genre itself. From the moment Black Sabbath unleashed their eponymous debut album way back in 1970, the Devil and all his works have been a ripe source of inspiration for metallers keen to shock and outrage.
However, the emergence of extreme metal, and particularly black metal, from the mid-80s onwards has produced a slew of bands writing almost exclusively on the occult. Belphegor belong firmly in this camp and appear to take their subject matter very seriously indeed.
Since signing with German metal label Nuclear Blast in 2005, the band's trajectory has shifted slightly upwards. This is what Nuclear Blast tend to do for their bands. An increased injection of material and moral support has allowed Belphegor to secure slots on some prestigious package tours and release consistently good and well-produced albums. It's taken them to the upper echelons of the underground, but they'll go no further.
