Customer Reviews

Satanica

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is one of the older Behemoth CDs so it is not as polished or musically mature as their later releases like Thelema 6 and Zos Kia Cultus. However, this album is one brutally evil work of true blackened death metal. All the songs on this CD are pretty brutal and straight forward. The best songs are "Decade of Therion" and "Sermon to the Hypocrites" both songs are total brutal works of satanic horror. While I feel that Behemoth has improved greatly as a band after this release, this album is still very good, just more of a straight forward death/black metal album rather than the more mature and technical works of their newest releases.

Absolutely stunning death/black metal album. The first track I heard from Satanica was Decade of Oepion, and I'll be damned, I was literally blown away. This cd is by the finest Polish Death/Black metal band, and without a doubt one of the best in the scene. Satanica is absolutely amazing. Bordering between death and black, from the evil guttural blackish vocals to the absolutely astonishing drumming, this is bass heavy (first indication to a more death metal inclination), and with guitar riffs/solos, this is destined to become a classic in the genre. I mean it, this is some serious stuff folks, dont pass by on it if you're into this kind of music. This is some of the finest there is. Also check out Thelema.6 by Behemoth, it's in the same vein, evil evil music. God I love it!

Wow...What can I say? Being a big black metal fan, I listened to this C.D. at a local record store (Root Cellar Records). I was blown away when I first heard it and it just keeps getting beter with every listen. Skirting the boundaries between black and death metal, this is one of the most impressive C.D.'s to come out recently(although it is two years old). From the opening track Decade of Oepion all the way to the end, you will not be disappointed. A definite 5 of 5. Add this one to your collection if you find it. You will not regret it.

After hearing the second song on this album "LAM" on a sampler of the cult German Ablaze magazine years ago, I felt I needed to have this album. Behemoth is one of those bands that combine brutal agression with great melodies, and "Satanica" is their first great effort of combining death metal with a pinch of black metal (actually, their previous album "Pandemonic Incantations" marked their first steps away from being a pure black metal band, but that album was just good, not a must-have).

Nergal, Behemoth's band leader, has in him the skills to write great riffs. I think some people will need to get used to his vocals, as they are in between the typical death metal and black metal style. Just like the music is, actually.

It's hard to tell which bands Behemoth is similar to, they are quite original, as much as a band can be nowadays that is. Even so, it will not sound as a surprise that Behemoth hails from Poland, just like Vader and Decapitated.

If you like their latter albums like "Thelema 6.0" and "Zos Kia Cultus" there is NO way you will dislike this album, even though the newer albums are a bit more technical than "Satanica" is.

If you don't know Behemoth yet, expect great, brutal death metal with a black metal edge (maybe just like Immortal, although this last band was a bit more catchy), with superb riffing, uncompromising drumming and texts influenced by Sumerian mythology, Lavey, etc.

THIS IS DEFINITELY A BAND TO DISCOVER!!!

Only when Behemoth's fourth disc was released did blackened death metal truly start to take form. 2000's "Satanica" is ripe with blinding energy, intensity, conviction and astounding musicianship. This disc, which is Behemoth's first real death metal influenced release, is top-shelf blackened/technical death metal. These songs' punishing, ultra muscular rhythms ooze with nimble, blazing riffs, vocals which alternate between growls and high-pitched barks, deliciously evil lyrics, and almost constant, frenetic death metal blasts (which are seemingly played with virtuosic ease from one of the best, fastest, and most technically proficient skinsmen in the business, Inferno). The result is a monster, "Satanica", which is completely devastating, ferocious, and genuinely tight and brutal. These songs are stripped of excess fat, making every powerful, punishing track full of frantic, engaging energy and painstaking technicality. "Decade Of Therion" begins the disc on a strong note by underpinning jackhammer insistence of walloping bass drums with searing guitar riffs. (Track six, "Star Spawn", is also this way.) The thunderous second track, "LAM", is one of the best songs of this bunch, because it's backed by chunky power chords and catchy, slamming, lightning fast blast beats which anchor the song. A few other killer songs are the scorching "Of Sephirotic Transformation and Carnality", "The Sermon to the Hypocrites" (which features a deft, driving beat, huge, crushing riffs, and Nergal's retching, black metal-esque yelps which are designed to make the listener's skin crawl), the mostly instrumental and mid-tempo "The Alchemist's Dream", and the album closer (an untitled bonus track), which is slower but equally as bludgeoning and features demonic, monstrous bellows. "Satanica" is Behemoth's first truly great record, and, luckily, the band didn't stop here; they did (and are doing) what all iconic metal bands do: continuing to grow and perfect their sound. They produced another superb album, "Zos Kia Cultus", in 2002, and eventually dropped the godly "Demigod" in 2005. Newcomers are advised to start with that career-defining album, but "Satanica" is still a great, truly inspiring album and a highly recommended pick up for all fans of this band and genre.

After being let down with behemoths recent album "Demigod", I figured there had to be more to this band than just the sound that I heard from Demigod. And I was right, Satanica is a vicious album from start to finish.

I enjoyed Nergal's unpolished vocals ten times more then the lack-luster enhanced vocals found on Demigod. They sound much more angry, and passionate in the sense that it seems like nergal is giving it his all throughout the record. There is also a stronger sent of behemoths black metal past on Satanica, Don't get me wrong Satanica is still death metal to the bone, its just the riffs sound more black then those found on Demigod. Or maybe its just the lower production value...

This is what Death metal should be, stuff that requires all your willpower just to prevent you jumping up and headbanging all over the place. In other words its very engaging music that will give you that great metal rush that makes you feel like going nuts. It has alot of power to it most of which comes from Inferno's killer drumming and Nergal's colossal riffs and solo's. I can honestly recomend "Satanica" to anyone who is into death metal. Actually, out of all of Behemoth's (death metal) albums this may be my favorite. Although I have yet to hear "Zos Kia Cultus".

Standout tracks are:
.: Decade of therion :. This is one of behemoth's best songs ever in my book. listen to it and know its glory!

.: Ceremony Of Shiva :. Great drum beats on this track, very original sounding track.

.: Of Sephirotic Transformation And Carnality :. An annoying name but amazing song. It never lets up just like Decade of therion.

.: Chant For Eschaton 2000 :. This is a pretty strange track with main lyrics sung in a chant followed by power metal esque vocals ( 0_0 ! ) it had me grin when I first heard it. Its a catchy track although you will have no idea what Nergal is saying until you look at the lyrics sheet. It also ends the album very triumphantly with brass horns blazing through your speakers.

Man, Behemoth used to be an innovative and extremely good death metal as Satanica shows.

If you're into death metal, this is a must-have. Nergal's voice is so vicious and vengeful on this album your stereo will almost start spewing acid. The guitar parts are well-written, yet at the same time absolutely crushing (something death metal needs more of).

Probably the highlight of Behemoth's career.

Simply put one of the best albums I have heard. Released in 1999, it finally sees a state-side release. Fans of black and death will like this album. BEHEMOTH has created a violent mix of both death and black meatl. From the opening pounding of Decade of Therion to the closing Chant of Eschaton, this is just a relentless album. The guitars are fast and shredding, while the vokalist Nergal sounds possessed and the drumming is hyper. If you get a chance to listen to this do so you will not be disappointed. Oh and the new one Thelma.6 is equally impressive.

Behemoth is a band that went t be ne of my favorites incredibly quickly. Each and everyone of these songs are very good, some of them are sort of in the other's shadows but that's in comparison to each song on this album, many of them are much better than anything else I may have heard in the metal genre. 90% of every piece of 'poetry' (as Behemoth themselves call it, for lack of better wrd really) I still actually listen to after hearing it many times.

But enough about my opinion on this band in general, on to the songs of this album:

Decade of Therion, 10/10: (reffered to as decade of oepion from what I have seen), an absluete perfect opener to a great album, fast with absoluetly no letdown from start to finish, the first few times I heard it through the headphones I trembled with the greatness of it.

LAM, 8/10: Fast, very much what Behemoth often sounds like but that's not a bad thing.

Ceremony of Shiva, 10/10: Excellent drum beat and guitar work, Nergal sounds like he has a sore throat when he...sings this, but it does give a good charm to the song.

Of Sephirothic Transormation and Carnality, 8/10: Again a rather fast song that instantly starts out with Inferno's drum work and Nergal's trademark death growl, just an average song (by Behemoth's standards, which is good)

The Sermon to the Hypocrites, 9/10: Not so good musically wise as it is lyrically, you'll have to read along to them on a lyrics site seeing how (in mine anyway) the only lyrics they had on the insert was for Decade of Therion

Starspawn, 8,5/10: It just sounds good.

The Alchemist's Dream, 8/10: Another average song.

Chant for Eschaton 2000, 9/10: An excellent song, and another one you might want to read the lyrics too just for kicks. The intro is a very loud guitar screech (hey, if I played guitar I would remember what they called it) that has a good transition from the ending of the previous track. The guitar riff is used over and over again throughout most of the song, but it's not a very bad thing.

Oh yeah, there are also 93 tracks on this disc, but only 10 are actuall music, the rest are just 1-2 second long tracks of silence. Here are my reviews for the hidden tracks:

Track 33, 9/10: Only under a minute long but it sounds cool. It's some techno like drumming while there are sythesized...things going on in the background, bassy and entrancing.

Track 93, 8,10: Sounds like he's speaking in backwards english with a distorted voice, only one and a half minutes long but okay to listen to I guess. I'll eventually find a way to play it backwards and see if he's saying anything in particular.

i really like the sound on this album, as compared to some of their newer stuff. yeah it doesn't sound as polished, but that helps make it good. i can hear plenty of emotion in the vocals and i just love the feel of the music. each track has a variety of sounds and makes the whole thing very interesting to listen to.
i'm listening to it more and more these days, it's really growing on me.