Septic Flesh "Communion" CD Slipcase

Issued in a jewel case with cardboard slipcase and poster

Limited special brazilian edition. Comes in a hot stamped slipcase adorned with golden details, a 12 page matte finish booklet and a 24x36cm poster.
The lyrics to "Lovecraft's Death" include titles of and references to several HP Lovecraft stories.

So you're coming out of a hiatus and are announcing a new full-length album for 2008. How do you do it? Simply by making the heaviest record in your discography. Septicflesh did that with Communion and it is jam packed with memorable songs. One of these factors stem from the usage of the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, which was also utilized on Dimmu Borgir's landmark album Death Cult Armageddon. However, the orchestra on here is much heavier than that album.
Main highlight "Anubis" use the orchestra for a bombastic and bouncy atmosphere, coupled with some very Opeth-inspired vocals by Spiros Antoniou. "Lovecraft's Death" is also an excellent number that uses the orchestra for a more theatrical effect, reminiscent of iconic Square Enix video games. I also like "Sunlight/Moonlight" for being the most guitar-based song on Communion, having more in common with melodic death metal than the symphonic death metal sound that mostly displayed on the album. The clean vocals within the chorus are catchy and give the song of a good vs. evil theme of sorts. It's a shame that Sotiris Vayenas doesn't usually perform with Septicflesh live.
With that being said, the vocals on Communion are a high point. Spiros Antoniou utilizes some of the deepest death growls known to man. They are best described as a mix between the vocals of Mikael Åkerfeldt (Opeth) and Nick Holmes (Paradise Lost), who have coincidentally both performed in Bloodbath. Sotiris Vayenas' clean vocals are one of the defining moments of Communion, with his performance on "Anubis" compliments the overall heaviness rather nicely. Fotis Benardo's drumming is a step up from the slow tempo of Septicflesh's death-doom era albums. Benardo will use the drums for atmosphere akin to Gojira and uses blast beats more often on Communion than on albums prior to it. His drumming on the title track shows this renewed aggression perfectly. I also think Spiros' bass playing benefits Communion rather well, as his playing coupled with the orchestra make this a rather dense album. Compared to previous albums, Christos Antoniou is the underdog on Communion, but his guitar play shines the most on sections where the orchestra takes back seat, such as on "Sangreal".
So how real is this album? Communion was not only Septicflesh's return statement, but it is also considered in retrospect to be the band's crowning achievement. The album is considered to be one of the best death metal albums of 2008, and is responsible for putting Septicflesh at the top of the symphonic death metal scene (along with Fleshgod Apocalypse). As such, I consider Communion to be the alpha in terms of beginning Septicflesh's discography, as it is the band's most essential album. 100% pure Greek metal.

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