Secrets Of The Moon ‎"Seven Bells" CD

German black metallers Secrets of the Moon deliver another great album of their trademark black interspersed with lots of doomy passages. Seven Bells whilst not a massive departure from their previous album is still highly enjoyable.
Secrets of the Moon, possibly my favourite black metal band from Germany along with Katharsis, have offered up a very decent follow-up to Privilegivm for their fifth outing 'Seven Bells'. 'Seven Bells' compared with the progression the band has made previously from release to release is in all honesty minimal, whereas a release such as 'Carved in Stigmata Wounds' to 'Antithesis' and then on to 'Privilegivm' there is a marked change. This is not to say that 'Seven Bells' is bad, I would say that the band are settling into their niche and feel they have now found their sound; only time will tell. A band that has become known for much evolution and distinction between releases will always be more likely to have aspersions cast on them than those bands who stick to the same formula every time (Darkthrone, Behexen, etc.) which can sometimes be a blessing and a curse; it's good for a band to feel confident in what they do and try to refine it, but by the same token although liking bands that change and start to follow a pattern I can grow tired of them, I know I will enjoy the music but if it's nigh on the same as their last release why bother? (Borknagar and Anaal Nathrakh spring to mind, both bands that I love but get tired of after 'Epic' and 'Eschaton' respectively). 'Seven Bells' however is still only the second release since SotM have started to refine their sound and as such, I have yet to get bored of their current incarnation.
The album is quite a long affair, clocking in at an hour with only 7 songs, the shortest song being 'Blood Into Wine' at 5:39. The songs often proceed at a fairly slow, very doom inspired pace and whilst there is not a lot of variation in the songs, one thing SotM know how to do very well is construct atmosphere through slow repetition; they are able to build songs up to an incredibly high degree at which point the next progression will ensue. The riffs on the album are very sparse, with lots of time between notes, the guitar playing is not particularly stellar technically but is utilised brilliantly in its minimalism. The drums on the album are very simplistic, similar to the guitars in allowing 'feeling' and atmosphere to come into the music.
Most of the songs on the album are enjoyable, some more so than others and a couple that compared to the rest seem like nothing more than filler ('Goathead' and 'Worship'). 'Serpent Messiah' is a nice healthy dose of 'black 'n' roll' that is straight out of the Satyricon handbook that is wholly satisfying. 'Nyx' and 'Three Beggars' are probably my runners-up, 'Nyx' is heavy in atmosphere and emotion (the video on YouTube is awesome), whilst 'Three Beggars' is a tremendous closer to the album, especially with the female vocals that make an appearance.
I have to give a special mention to the artwork, that as with all SotM releases it’s stupendous, nice, simple and highly striking. The lyrics on the album are mostly centered around Crowley's writing and influence, as will become immediately apparent on hearing the opener title track 'Seven Bells' as 'Seven, Seven, Seven' is chanted through the song.
This album whilst not perfect is a healthy dose of current black metal with a different edge compared to what is abound in the market at the moment. Anyone interested in Celtic Frost or Triptykon (Celtic Frost's new guise) will like this, it is of mention that Tom G. Warrior of Celtic Frost fame and V. Santura from epic German black metal band Dark Fortress assisted in producing the album, lots of comparisons can be found between the aforementioned bands and Secrets. 'Seven Bells' may not be the best release of this year or of their career but it is certainly up there and is worthy of a mention for albums that came out in 2012 in the history books.

Official promo video: 

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