Release date: March 15th, 2011
Type: Split
Label: Cold Breath of Silence
Format: CD
Limitation: 666 copies
Band members:
Accursed Christ
Youriy "Hater" Shcheglov Vocals
M.D. Guitars
Decadence
Morning Star Bass, Guitars, Vocals
Tamer Guitars
I recently picked up this split along with many other CD's at the Triple Six Shop in Bangkok Thailand. Picked it up based on the cover, which has amazing artwork by Gustave Dore. I had next to no clue what to expect and was pleasantly surprised. Accursed Christ has a typical but welcome raw dark sound. Fast paced, crisp sounding drums keeping beautifully cold guitar riffs marching forward. It's tone brings forth imagery of warfare and the brisk Russian countryside, no doubt an inspiration to the music. The album carries on perfectly, mildly distorted guitars blasting forth sounding evil as fuck never repeating anything too often. Vocals are mixed well and variate enough to keep from getting stale, but rarely shine though as spectacular. The pacing is well done and doesn't leave the listener bored, although every now and again you may find a riff or two to be forgettable and rather uninspiring. Twin guitar work is prevalent and brilliantly executed on some of the more simple, sorrowful melodies, while other times the guitars sort of mash together in a fuzzy power-chord mess, imagine slayer played by a garage band. The third song is simply an atmospheric, distorted melody played over ambient war noises. It would have been awesome if it ever kicked into a full on black metal assault but instead it plays for a few minutes and trails off. An anti-climactic end to an otherwise great half by Accursed Christ. Decadence's style is immediately noticeable as different, guitars are very swinging and have a killer buzz-saw black metal tone. Drums are well placed in the mix, poking through everything just enough as to carry on the melodies rather than pick up the pace. The drums are often very fast however, providing a trance to go along with the wide open, ethereal guitar and symphonic melodies. Vocals are harsh and very abrasive, but don't necessarily shriek over top of everything else, screams echo throughout, eerie and at the same time cathartic. You can hear the vocalist pouring out his heart into some blood curdling screams. The sounds expressed in these songs can't be described as strictly evil, but they definitely chill your spine and sound threatening. "Eternal Torment" drags out the final 10 minutes by the throat. Suicidal and grim as all hell, the guitars create a distorted drone over an ominous and haunting piano piece. Beautifully cascading piano melodies atop a steady, marching drum beat give way to very heavy, brooding stringed sections, evoking emotions of regret, grandeur, awe, and sorrow all at once. The atmosphere created by the use of symphonic/electronic sounds and the various guitar solo's keeps the song from ever being able to let your attention go. The album cover goes perfect with the emotions stirred up by this song. Piano and guitar play out the split refraining the same deep, intense melody found throughout "Eternal Torment". All in all Accursed Christs contribution was a good example of uptempo thrashing black metal that would appease almost any black metal fan, but leaves a little to be desired when it comes to memorable melodies and riffs. Decadence's half was incredible, a cold and bitter 3 songs, each with their own personality. "Eternal Torment" is a must listen for anyone into the more depressive side of black metal, and the other two songs are fantastic as well. Totally worth checking out!
