Satyricon is an iconic (no pun intended) band, who, like Emperor but in a different way, stood apart from the rest of the black metal scene by embracing other influences into their music and that's what kept everything so interesting. Satyr said it himself, they want to be a great band, not a great black metal band. This album is another step in their evolution of being one of the greatest bands today, perhaps as great as they were among their own, but now with a wider perspective. When I first heard this album (hell, the first 20 times maybe) I had a really hard time digging into it. This album took a lot of time, but I now find it as one of my favourites if not my favourite metal albums. It's complex, it's different, and in my opinion is pure brilliance and it's where Satyricon shines the most in their whole discography. Having this said, lets move on to the actual review, track by track, but with a little insight
on the album as a whole.
With Ravenous Hunger - After a rather industrial intro, which reminds us of machines marching to war, we hear the warcry "At my signal, unleash hell." And then assault begins. We're presented pounding double bass and buzzing raw guitars (but perceptible). Volcano isn't your typical black metal album, not even by Satyricon standadrs. There are blastbeats here and there, but very well-placed. This album has a lot of atmospheric passages, where experimentation with synths, guitar noise and droning riffs make their way into this ravenous fury. Lyrics aren't really remarkable on this one, but the theme in this album is a bit philosophical, and these lyrics are no exception.
Angstridden - There is a lot of exploration in the rhythmic section. Drums have a great rock'n'roll feeling in this song. Blastbeats are hand to hand with some tribal breaks, the guitars are the most dissonant thing you have heard
coming from Satyr. Here we have another mid to slow paced interlude, and I think these moments are where this album really shines.
Fuel for Hatred - My least favourite track. Nice black'n'roll, yes, looks a bit fueled, but I feel that this song doesn't belong in an album where most of the music is more complex and really innovative. What we have here is a
straight forward fast-paced rock and roll with harsh vocals. It too has a slow tempo part, but it's nothing really worth of listening.
Suffering the Tyrants - This song starts with a really transcending feeling, like Satyr is dragging you around with his voice, playing with your conscience. Some eerie sounds blending with the guitars, distorted chords and screaming harmonics make this one of the most inspired and inspiring songs in this album. The slow part on this one is really sick, morbid even. The raw production of the guitars really helps into the atmosphere, adding more noise to the instrumental chaos. Frost is really dynamic on these eight songs, exploring a lot of rhythms besides the typical blastbeat and double pounding that we love so much.
Possessed - This one is a lot faster, but with time for some droning riffs on the end. We also find on this album lots of start-and-stop breaks that really add into the rock feeling of some of the songs here. I haven't made many or any remarks about Satyr's voice so far, so I'm gonna take the chance to do it now. It's harsh, sure it is, but it's not black metal. It's not even "sung", it's like he's reading poetry using harsh vocals. The few times the clean voice is used, it adds a great impact to the song because it blends so well with the atmosphere.
Repined Bastard Nation - I really can't get the meaning and purpose of the lyrics, but this songs holds one of my favourite parts on this album, which starts at 0:55. Just listen to that rhythm guitar going along with the snare, it adds incredible balance to the melodic line. We have blastbeats on this one too, but they don't sound black metal in this context, sounds more like some industrial thing or whatever.
Mental Mercury - Now we're talking. With this song begins the best part of the album, the epic part. It starts really fast, but I always feel like it's building intensity. The inhuman scream "Suffering!", the synth on the background, the trumpet, it really feels like you're up in the hills, watching an army, slow and unstoppable, making the ground shake. Then at 3:30 it's genius. Everytime I listen to this song I get the bumps. The female vocals, whispering, the guitar slowly digging to your subconscious, the almost jazz-like drumming... This is what I'll be listening when I trip on fucking acid. It's amazing. And it's the most brilliant riff I've ever heard. Ever.
Black Lava - The final song on this album. Marking at 14:34, it's the epic of this album in its true sense, but after such brilliance on the previous track, it's hard to keep it up, but Satyricon managed it very well. This one is always mid-paced and it's lyrics represent pefectly what is, to me, the spirit of black metal. Pure. Fucking. Coldness. The lava this volcano spills will not melt you to death and engulf you in flames. It will drown you to a mind-chilling state, that you just can't help but embrace.
To finish this review, I'd just like to reccomend those of you that did not enjoy this album at the first listens, give it a shot. Listen to it from time to time, try to appreciate all the details it offers, because if you're just comparing it to what you were expecting from Satyricon you won't find what you seek. This album is a genre by it's own as it's not black metal influenced by other genres. It picks from a lot of genres and merges it into this enormous masterpiece.
Satan, the Kings are heading home.
Official promo video:
youtube.com/watch?v=eXNJcamjSaQ&list=RDeXNJcamjSaQ&start_radio=1Sample:
youtube.com/watch?v=j7qgOVfadKA&list=RDj7qgOVfadKA&start_radio=1
