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EMPEROR
Emperor / Wrath of the Tyrant
The first Emperor demo + the first Mini CD on one album. Since those album are pretty hard to find nowadays, the Emperor guys released them on one album so more people could hear it. Thats always kind.......
Some of the songs you can hear on "In the Nightside..." album, re-recorded. But old material are always great. The sound are a little more demo, but still you can hear that it´s Emperor playing. During this recording Mortiis was playing bass, but he left before the debut album. He also wrote some songs.
The second part, the first demo, is not so much to hear, if you aren´t a die-hard fan of Emperor. Th sound is shitty but the feeling is there......
I like this one. It´s cult and history! But for "new" fans should buy a ordinary album instead.
Ranking: 6 / 10
EMPEROR
In the Nightside Eclipse
The debut album. It´s hard to find words for such a masterpiece. Great
is one word....
This was original back then: keyboards buried in the background together with
the guitars. You can also hear Ihsahn´s voice somewhere there as well.
Everything in a perfect harmony!
Favorite songs are of course "Into the Infinity of Thoughts", "Cosmic Keys...", "I am the Black Wizards" and "Inno a Satana". But the rest of the songs are not bad at all.
This is pure great music, recorded by a couple of genius!
Ranking: 10 / 10
EMPEROR
Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk
After 4 years Emperor finally returns! The wait was long and the expatiation was more than high. With a new drummer (Trym) and bass player (Alver), Samoth and Ihshan created a masterpiece again!
This is pure Emperor again, even if the sound are different and the songs are more varied. The blasting hymn "The Loss and Curse of Reverence" simply blows your head off! Fast, fast with the "Emperor-keyboards" in the background. There are also more melodies, and more clan voices by Ihsahn this time.
Hit songs are "Ye Entencemperium", "Thus Spake the Nightspirit" and "With Strength I Burn"
This is Black Metal Art! (As it says on the back of cover)
Ranking: 10 / 10
EMPEROR
IX Equilibrium
1999, and Emperor are back. I had some trouble with this record. It didn´t eat my ears up in the first listening, and not the second either......It still haven´t actually.
There are some great elements, but it doesn´t reach up the the level we are used to. If another group recorded this album it would be called a Masterpiece, but since Emperor have done great music for almost ten years we expect more and more from them.
The music are more straight forward now, and even more varied than before. But, as I said, something is missing......But I will wait for the next album with no fear!
Ranking: 6 / 10
EMPEROR
Emperial Live Ceremony
A live album from Emperor who says that they NOT are a live band. Thats strange cause they are kicking ass at the stage (at least when I saw then in Oslo 1999).
This one is recorded in London during the IX Equilibrium tour. All the "hit" songs are on the playlist and of course some from the latest album. The sound is very good in fact, not what we are used to when a black metal band release a live album. But as we all know, Emperor stand for quality and perfection, so maybe it´s not a surprise.
The CD also contains "I am the Black Wizards" live from somewhere, so it´s not a rip off CD. Clearly worth the money!
Ranking: 8 / 10
EMPEROR
Prometheus - The Discipline of Fire and Demise
How I longed for this album....The last album from Emperor, and thats very sad, cuase the name Emperor stands for quality, perfection and great music! At least for me. Ihsahn and Samoth are masterminds in making music, and it´s very sad that this is the last thing we will hear from them.
Well.....I was a little bit nervous when I pushed Play on my CD; the last album was, in Emperor standard, a poor album, so I hoped that they didn´t follow the "IX..." line in making music. But as the first minute of the first song was complete I knew that this album is a "real" Emperor album. The songs are more experimental than ever before, maybe because Ihsahn wrote all the songs this time. Samoth used to assist Ihsahn in the music writing, but not this time. Sometimes the songs reminds me a bit of Arcturus album "La Masquerade Infernale", with some strange (but not bad) riffs, and strange keyboard noises. Ihsahn´s clean voice are much better this time, and it appears more often than before, and he can really sing, that for sure.
If I should compare this one with the earlier releases (I should not do that, but it´s hard to dont do it...), I would say that this is a mixture between "Anthems..." and "IX...". The straightforward songs reminds me of "Anthems.." and the more experimental ones with "IX...". The complexity from "IX..." are also heard on this album: strange and maniac-like riffs, with some creepy and fire alarm-like keyboard sounds in the background. And together with Trym´s battery pulse I could not say anything but: Masterpiece!
The only bad thing is that some songs are too carried away with guitar riffs, loaded on each other, for a couple of minutes. I think that the song loses it´s pulse with too much experimental riffs and sounds......But what the hell! A great album!
Ranking: 9 / 10
Nowadays it's not very often I have the joy to experience a really good black metal album. Most of today's black metal bands sucks. There are a few out there that still deliver some great music, and those bands are those who started the whole thing. Bands like Emperor (even though they are not among us anymore), Mayhem, Darkthrone. And Enslaved. They have played under that name for over 10 years now. That's truly amazing! And this is the first time I really listen to a complete album. I have, off course, heard them before, but never an album all through. And this album are something special. Well, Enslaved have always been special with their progressive and straight forward black/viking metal. But after listening to modern acts like Dimmu Borgir and Cradle of Filth I would like to say that this is the sound of modern black metal. It's not necessary to have a symphony orchestra from Warzawa and tons of keyboards to make it progressive or epic. No, just look and listen to "Below the Lights". The album are so pure and crisp but at the same time filled with atmosphere. Sometimes they play the same riff for 3 minutes, and sometimes a weird riff with a weird drumbeat hits you. Sometimes they throw blastbeats at you and more often not. The mix between ordinary heavy metal, thrash and black are brilliant.
Anyway, this album is great! And there is still hope for modern black metal (which not includes Dimmu and Cradle, even if those acts are nice ones in their own way). The only problem is that "Below the Lights" is too short...
Ranking: 9 / 10
My first ever review written of this Swedish death/rock platoon. That's embarrassing, considering that this group have been around for a while (1990). And I am not a huge fan of Entombed either, even if I liked the "Wolverine Blues" album a lot Those after that one are not favorites. Well, those songs I have heard from "Morning Star" are okay. Not more. So, this is in fact the second time I really try to listen to a whole Entombed album. And it hits me that they haven't change much since the "Wolverine" album, even if the "To Ride, Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth" album was an escape into a new way of death/rock n' roll.
"Inferno" are truly Entombed. The dirty deathrock metal are the sound of quality. These guys knows how to write catchy songs that not sounds corny. It sounds so cool and dirty. Well, that's not news for this album. No, it has been the trademark for more then 10 years. One of the reasons are of course L-G Petrov's voice, which is a darker variant of Brian Johnson. The guitars and the bass contribute as well to the raw sound.
Opening song "Retaliation" is one this album's highlights: slow, heavy and angry. This attitude are to be found all through "Inferno", in different tempo. Another highlight are "That's When I Became a Satanist", "The Fix is in" and more. And I wonder how many bands who could name a song "Children of the Underworld" without get a handful of shit? Maybe DIO can... Entombed gets away with everything!
Ranking: 8 / 10
An unknown Finnish gothrock constellation to me. Dont know if this is their debut album or not. But that doesnt matter.....
When a band that performs gothrock releases a new album, and specially when the band comes from Finland, I just cant stop compare those new acts with HIM and Amorphis (the new Amorphis). I know thats not the proper way to make a review of an album, but I cant help it. But the thing is that Entwine doesnt sound like HIM nor Amorphis (or 69 Eyes, To/Die/For etc). So they have a completly new sound? No. Absolutely not! We have heard it before. Lolipop Goth with melodies and broken hearts. Heard it before? Yes....
But actually I like this, since I am very weak for this kind of music, and since they come from my eastern neighbour Finland, which is a land that stands for quality music (well, not the black metal scene...urk), I must like this....strange isn´t it?
The music is filled with melodies, and the guitars are working well. And the Entwine folks didn´t destroyed that with some lousy keyboards. Credits! The male singer are doing a very nice job, and the female singer as well. The lyrics are not at the same level....Standard goth lyrics with broken hearts etc. But the music is all worth it.
Ranking: 6 / 10
ETERNAL TEARS OF SORROW
Vilda Mannu
A Finnish band, trying to copy what Amorphis already have done. And they even fail to do that.......
I have never heard of this group before, and even the band name tells me do stay away from it, so I wonder how this album came in my possession.
First of all: The singer cannot sing "death metal". The songs are crap, the female voice sucks. The whole concept sucks. Stay away from this!
Ranking: 1 / 10
EVENFALL
Still in the Grey Dying
A new band (at least for me) which are from Southern Europe. They are playing melodic black metal with influences from Cradle of Filth. The singer´s voice sounds like Dani´s: like a cat who is mad. But even if it´s not original and new this is a nice album, but not more. There are some nice riffs and melodies on the album. The music it self are mid-paced and sometimes slower.
Lyrics about heaven and hell, love and death.....yeah, you know.....
Ranking: 6 / 10
