Austrian death/black metal band Belphegor is back with their third release, titled Necrodaemon Terrorsathan. This band has been around for nearly ten years and shows no signs of softening their approach. It is still fast brutal technical satanic death at it’s finest. With messages like “keep your country clean, burn your local church,” prominently featured at their website, it is obvious they are not looking to adopt any of the current trends. they are still competing with Marduk in the offensive album cover category, but this one is actually toned down from 1997’s Blutsabbath art.

If one looked at the packaging or at their costuming it would be fair to say old school black metal, but that would be selling them short. What they are is brutal death mixed with ultra fast black with a technical aspect unusual for both. When I think of brutal death I don’t think of musical complexity, but these guys do. Not only do all the overused adjectives for extreme metal apply to Belphegor, they actually seem inadequate here. The musicianship is excellent, and the vocals, often a weak point for extreme bands, are outstanding. They refer to their vocals as grunts and growls. The main style is an excellent low growl in the death style with black metal feeling. They are among the best “satanic” vocals I’ve heard and they make me envision a biped goat with a microphone.

At thirty five and a half minutes, the album is short, but their are no weak songs. “Necrodaemon Terrorsathan” “SBSR” “Cremation of Holiness” and “Necrodaemon Terrorsathan part II” all stand out, but the album is strong from beginning to end, one of the best of 2000. If you are a fan of past Belphegor releases or a fan of Dark Funeral, Marduk, Dissection, etc. this release is destined to be in your CD player permanently.

[Visit the band's website]

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