Lord Impaler - Admire The Cosmos Black (2011)

Lord Impaler "Admire The Cosmos Black"

Spring 2011, Self-released

Listening Needs

Physical Needs

The Greek underground metal scene comprises numerous solid bands that never get huge attention, or choose to never get huge attention for that matter. I can't say Lord Impaler are not in this list, but still for those who delve into the scene they are of great importance. After several demos for over a decade, they finally released their first full length in 2011.

Lyrically, the band deals with subjects often talked about here, staying true to the purpose of our own culture or just avoiding improvisations and following the beaten track. While anti-christianity is common among many black/death metal bands, the pride of ancient Greece can be found mainly in Greek bands (not only, of course) and what stands out here is the poetic lyricism of these guys' stories. They don't follow the blasphemic type of lyrics, which is easy and really doesn't shock anyone anymore. Im generally never into spending time on lyrics of bands because i chiefly focus on the music, still this one is an enjoyable read and sing-along.

The band used to have no drummer at all and they would change for shows and releases. The wheel of the drumming was held by Hellhammer himself in this release, a semantic figure in all of black metal, with an infamous history behind the kits of both Mayhem and Arcturus. Moreover, the mixing and mastering of the album was done by Knut Valle in Molla Lydstudio, Norway. That being said, you would expect a norwegian sounding album, right? Well, no. Lord Impaler have adopted the talent of the above artists into their own unique music, which is melodic and atmospheric as well as heavy and acute. The songs are a demonstration of accurate riffs and cordial vocals, enhanced with furious drumming, co-existing perfectly throughout the whole album. The ambient parts and synths are also very nice, "Void" and the second part of "Celebrating the Elder Spirits" have a wistful feeling, similar to the samples of Lustre. Some ambience can be found in "Hymn to the Nymphe", which by the way is a tribute to the greek pagan folk/black metal act Daemonia Nymphe.

Clean vocals are used very slightly in a couple of tracks, in the form of a low voice of a narrator in greek. All the songs vary from three to eleven minutes and the whole album lasts and hour and something, which is more than enough for a full length release. My ideal duration is 35-50 minutes and i rarely enjoy longer releases because they fall into repetition, but that didn't happen here. Even though i enjoy each and every song, i still think a whole hour of music for one album is a bit excessive. Apart from this somewhat insignificant note, the album is strongly recommended.

"Δεινέ λαοψαρά, που διαφεντεύεις τον κόσμο από τον αχυρένιο σου θρόνο
Πότε θα μας αφήσεις να δούμε τον ήλιο με τα δικά μας μάτια;
Πότε ν' ακούσουμε το κελάρυσμα του νερού;
Ο τόπος σου κι αν είναι γαλήνιος, στεγνός ειν' από φώς και ήχους..."

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DAMAGE: [8.0/10]