March 29, 2024

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Album Review: Belphegor – “Conjuring the Dead”

Belphegor-Conjuring-the-Dead

Austrian blackened death metal act, Belphegor, have recently released their latest full-length in their blasphemous discography entitled “Conjuring the Dead”. With their tenth release, Belphegor continue with the malicious sound they are known for and do not appear to be slowing down any time soon. How does “Conjuring the Dead” compare with the rest of the Belphegor discography?

Going into this album, I wasn’t overly ecstatic for a new Belphegor record. The band is a perfection of the combination of the worlds of both death and black metal. However, Belphegor does seem to keep hashing out the same formula for quite some time now not only dealing with record to record but also song to song on each album. As much as I love the combination of tremolo picking, blast beats, and vocals more ferocious from hell, it can get repetitive hastily. There are some belphegor songs where the entire song is tremolo picking. Even the leads! So with “Conjuring the Dead”, I figured that it would be Belphegor album X all over again. However, I still had a slight glimmer of hope fans would be hearing something a little different.

“Conjuring the Dead” turns out to be the middle ground in these two scenarios. Belphegor still continue with the format fans know them for, but they also provide many new elements. In contrast to the stereotypical and blistering fast speeds, Belphegor does slow down quite a few times throughout the record to a mid-paced tempo. This aspect alone makes the album stick out to me in their discography. Another plus is seen in the flow and presentation of material. The interlude track “The Eyes” helps bridge the album flow and the concluding track “Pactum in Aeternum” has the feeling of an actual conclusion. Listeners will also hear more samples, leads that sound more melodic than your typical Belphegor, and even a new addition to vocal techniques. The vocal techniques can be easily distinguishable on the opening track “Gas Mask Terror”. Although the vocals seem different and may be a hit or miss for some fans, I quickly accustomed an ear to them.

The second track is just as fast and punishing as the first but its with the third “In Death” where the mid-tempo speed makes its first appearance. These first three tracks are arguably the standout tracks on the album. However, “Legions of Destruction” has quite the punch as well. What helps the song thrive so much is the ingenious idea of the two guest vocalists on the track. Belphegor picked one legend from each side of their main influences – each with a unique voice fans will be sure to recognize. Deicide’s Glen Benton significantly adds to the aggressive factor with his compelling growls while Mayhem’s Attila Csihar adds the enigmatic atmosphere with his practically trademarked snarls. “Conjuring the Dead” then finishes up with tracks “Flesh, Bones, and Blood” and “Lucifer, Take Her!” and finally wraps up with the concluding track that is actually quite soft leaving the record lasting at roughly thirty-six minutes.

Next, Erik Rutan’s production sounds flawless as usual. Drums have great tonality with a bass drum full of kick, a poppy snare, and crystal-clear cymbals. Guitars and bass have a great tone that well serves the balance of black and death in Belphegor’s music. Vocals are well produced as well but are by no means overproduced. The added choir voices and other effect elements also sound on point. Everything from the snare with the perfect “pop” to it to the superb mixing quality leaves this as another extremely well-produced album.

Although many aspects of this album were positive, Belphegor did have a couple factors that kept “Conjuring the Dead” from being better. First is with the material presented itself. Although some of the tracks on “Conjuring the Dead” sounded phenomenal, others appeared quite weak to these few. Enough to the point to where I’d almost consider a few tracks being filler and with the album slightly over thirty minutes, it makes the impact that much worse in comparison to if the album was maybe forty-five minutes or longer. They aren’t necessarily bad but, Belphegor probably could have taken more time in their craft for the few here and there. Also, I personally am not a huge fan of the lyrics. The lyrical style is the same that Belphegor is known for and it all comes down to personal preference. This doesn’t have anything to do with the satanic and anti-christian themes sprawled all throughout Belphegor’s discography but more so the complexity of the lyrics. I would rather see the intelligent lyrics off Behemoth’s “The Satanist” rather than lyrics such as “Gasmask terror. We crush the world. Nuklear Sathan. F*** you all.” seen in “Gasmask Terror”.

Overall, “Conjuring the Dead” did leave me pleased in the end. Most Belphegor fans should enjoy this album as they still portray everything they’ve portrayed themselves as before. A good chunk of the songs presented are extremely catchy, quick, and brutal. Belphegor certainly begun to show variation in song structure and speed and is exactly what helps this album stand out from the last few. If Belphegor continues down this path, the next album holds potential to be even better than “Conjuring the Dead”. Standout tracks are the title-track, “Gasmask Terror”, “In Death”, and “Legions of Destruction”. Make sure you pick up “Conjuring the Dead” because it definitely deserves a spot in your collection and is further evidence to why as Belphegor is at the forefront of the modern blackened-death metal movement.

Rating: 8/10

Be sure to check out the music video for “Conjuring the Dead” below!

 

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