Customer Reviews

Theogonia (Dig)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Three years prior I stumbled upon Sanctus Diavolos at a local music store and bought it on impulse, never before hearing of Rotting Christ. I have mixed feelings about that album due to it's highly repetitive nature. It did, however, have some excellent standout tracks which were good enough to keep me interested. Then comes Theogonia.

I am floored. Every track presented here is standout and not a single negative comes to mind. Gone from Theogonia is the repetitve riffing, chorus, and drawn out sound effects that bogged down Sanctus Diavolos instead replaced by original, creative, and fresh works that should cement Rotting Christ's place in the metal world indefinitely. I am now the proud owner of every Rotting Christ album from Thy Mighty Contract on up and in my opinion this is the pinnacle of their work- their darkest, heaviest, hardest hitting effort to date. I predict that 2007 will be the year of Rotting Christ and hopefully they attract the recognition they so deserve for this accomplished album.

If you own any Rotting Christ and enjoyed them IN THE SLIGHTEST you owe it to yourself to give Theogonia a listen. They have far exceeded my expectations with this excellent release as I'm sure they will yours.

My favorite tracks are:
Xaoeteneto (The Sign of Prime Creation)
Enuma Elish
Gaia Tellus
Nemecic
He, The Aethyr
Threnody

This is quite possibly the greatest Rotting Christ album to date. With a production value that exceeds their previous release, "Sanctus Diavolos" (I know! That album sounded great!), and a significantly added crunch to the lead guitars this band is clearly at the peak of their powers. Not only are there blastbeats aplenty mingled with their signature twin-guitar assault, but there is also an added sense of groove and layered ambience. The most surprising aspect, besides the incredible production, is the fact that included into the gothic mood and Black Metal attack is a feeling of clear enjoyment in the songwriting. The energy level brought to this release is superb and infectious, the creativity within the songcraft indelible to the end. This is a two-disc set. The first disc contains the actual album with a video clip of "Keravnos Kivernitos" and four different wallpapers of various sizes. The second disc is a DVD containing different songs selected from their back catalog, and although the sound for each is muffled and the visual aspect not all that impressive, it is worth seeing just to see how rabidly devout their fans are abroad. Fans should not hesitate to purchase this album as soon as possible; as for newcomers this is THE place to start collecting. The total running time is (42:47) but the songs are so detailed with epic production value and furious riffing that it actually plays longer than it seems it should.

1. X-(THE SIGN OF PRIME CREATION) 3:20
2. KERAVNOS KIVERNITOS 4:41
3. NEMECIC 4:15
4. ENUMA ELISH 4:39
5. PHOBOS' SYNAGOGUE 4:31
6. GAIA TELLUS 4:39
7. REGE DIABOLICUS 2:52
8. HE, THE AETHYR 4:34
9. HELIOS HYPERION 3:50
10. THRENODY 5:21

I've been waiting for a new Rotting Christ for a long time and I'm glad to say that this album will be another fine addition to everyone's Rotting Christ library. The best way to describe this album is a cross between the speed and attitude of "Khronos" and "Sanctus Diavolos" with the melodic riffs from albums like "Triarchy of the Lost Lovers" or "Sleep of the Angels". Throw that in with horns and female vocals that sound like ancient Greek music and you have "Theogonia". With some of these songs like "Nemecic", it almost sounds like Sakis took elements from the "Troy" or "Alexander" movie scores and combined them with the familiar Rotting Christ elements. The end result is interesting and makes the album stand out from the rest of the records. Sakis' lyrics on this album are even MORE abstract than before which makes it hard to follow the storyline, but in the end that doesn't matter. Bottom line: if you like Rotting Christ you will definitly enjoy this album.

The return of whom I hold as the most underrated band inside the metal landscape. Rotting Christ exhibit the originality in composition that I crave...making black metal more than just demonic vocals and cascading background keyboards. Frontman/songwriter Sakis continues to draw upon the blood-drenched catacombs of Perdition's flaming pit, but does so with an evil elegance missing from most metal of the genre. The choral introductions and spoken incantations are there of course, but so are the unpredictable arrangements and head-banging riff guitars that inspire a fist-pumping plunge into momentary psychosis. Don't be fooled by the band's name, what you'll find inside is a melodic expanse of forceful, guitar driven malady overlaid with soulful drumming and tons of ancillary enhancement. There is not a weak song on this album...it bleeds with intensity and for that reason is a constant companion while I dredge through many a work day with the rest of the drones. 10 out of 10 Best Cut: He, The Aethyr

With a name like Rotting Christ I had generally supposed that this band do little more than black metal noise. I have consequently just taken a big slap in the face by some of the best crafted, atmospheric and tuneful metal I've heard in a longtime. From the demonic (yet very listenable) vocals, the technical, busy and melodic guitars, to the delicate neo classical orchestration and choir work (including arabic sounding warbling and ancient Greek chanting), we have all the right ingredients to travel to another place and to a distant era. Beautiful, chilling, dark music to conjur up images of being chased around monastries by evil monks with only Sean Connery and and a handful of candles to save you. Needless to say, the Rotting Christ back catalogue is currently having a good seeing to by someone who has shamefully overlooked them and their monstrous talent for the last fifteen years.

Hail the Greeks from the heart of the Black Metal scene. Production is thick, sound is atmospheric (without keyboards). The oriental elements in the music is more visible. The song writing is excellent. Less black metal influences (but there are still)... And the riffs... Yes they are good. They have evolved over time, and this is a proof that they have the potential to write good LPs in the near future. A must buy if u are into metal (and I mean real metal of course)...

Rotting Christ's "Theogonia" is definitely a contender for the best metal album of 2007 and who would have thought it? I have known about Rotting Christ for about ten years however I have been a casual listener. The last Christ album I bought was "A Dead Poem" which was about 10 years ago. I also own "Triarchy of the Lost Lovers" and although I enjoyed both albums they didn't strike me extremely hard. At least not hard enough to buy more of their records, I was then browsing Metal Hammer magazine and I saw that Rotting Christ had a new album coming out. Excuse my ignorance but I didn't even realize the band was still together. I mean lets face it, finding an album of theirs in a main chain record store is not an easy feat. Well the article caught my interest and I thought what the heck I'll check out their new album to see what the sound like ten years after "A Dead Poem". Well to make a long story short I had to special order "Theogonia" I guess the name Rotting Christ scares a lot of record store salesmen away.

From the first 60 seconds of the first track I was blown away. This was melodic black metal in it's grandest form. What is even more amazing is each track after the first seemed to get better and better. Actually to be completely honest after listening to this album numerous times I can not name any highlight tracks because they are all that good. The whole record is one complete epic metal journey. Any band that is thinking about recording an epic album needs to listen to "Theogonia" first to see how a true epic metal record should be done. Rotting Christ completely caught me off guard with this release. I knew I would probably like this album but I had no idea I would enjoy it this much. The musicianship on this record is top notch. I would recommend to any one who enjoys black metal, epic metal, or just plain heavy metal in general to pick up "Theogonia" In my opinion it has the capability of being the metal release of the year although it will not get the recognition it deserves because of the band's name. I do know one thing I now have a lot of back catalogue I have to purchase and catch up on from these Greek gods of metal.

All of Rotting Christ's albums are excellent, but 2007's Theogonia stands out impressively between then and 1997's A Dead Poem. What makes Rotting Christ great is they can sure tear it up in blastbeat fashion, but this is not their main M.O. Instead they stay just above mid pace, and when the moment calls for it, then they get occasionally heavier, and it's this restraint that sets them apart from so many other groups. It's still heavy, but it's also thematic. Theogonia explores their Greek heritage in musical fashion which is something not heard before in their catalog but produces a powerful element of musical ambiance. Also there is instances of Folk cleverly injected in. This album doesn't beat around the bush, maximum impact, heavy as you like it, and takes you on a Greek themed journey that's unforgettable.

This is by far their bast work and not only. This album is one of the best black metal albums i have ever heard. i hate their previous work but this album makes the difference. Most of the tracks are amazing. My favorite is Nemecic. I am not a fanatic black metal fan -> i judge most of these albums very negative but here is one of my exceptions. There is passion here (this is not another depressive album). Its a masterpiece in the black metal scene. To tell you the truth is the best black metal album after Cruelty and the beast by Cradle of filth.A must for all black metal fans and for metal generally fans (its so good).

this album is my favorite album i own. it has just the right mixture of heaviness and melody and the choir is simply amazing.