SAMAEL - Blood Ritual

Blood Ritual FORMAT: CD
REALEASE DATE: 01.12.1992
RECORD COMPANY: Century Media
 
9.0
METALFAN RATING:
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
 
8.6
USERS RATING: 12 votes

Top 1992: #47
Samael more
LINE UP:
Vorphalack - voce, chitara
Masmiseim - bas
Xytraguptor - tobe, clape
TRACKLIST:

01. Epilogue02. Beyond The Nothingness03. Poison Infiltration04. After The Sepulture05. Marcabre Operetta06. Blood Ritual07. Since The Creation...08. With The Gleam Of Torches09. Total Consecration10. Bestial Devotion11. ...Until The Chaos

The second album from Switzerland’s Samael was released in 1992, and is a natural continuation of their debut. Dark metal, specific to the band’s early years, is much better shaped this time, the sound, song writing and atmospheric insertions, based for the first time 100% on keyboards, raise the quality level of the whole product.

A brooding, dark, Satanic atmosphere makes you shiver when you hear this rather strange album, given the worldwide metallic context. Why strange? Because the terrifying feeling that dominates the album from start to finish arises from compositions that are largely simplistic, from riffs using rather common combinations of notes, but are played with an original touch and feeling. This does not excel in technique and composition, but is played correctly and has great atmosphere.

 

Blood Ritual... is by definition a Satanic album, even though its style has nothing to do with black metal. It is a return to what was happening about 7 years before, when the first wave of black metal was making itself heard, but with many improvements in song writing, atmosphere and precision. Another element that increases the originality of this product is the addition of doom metal, more than welcome in the extremely dark lyrical context. And since we’re talking about the lyrics, they are dominated by the connection with darkness, the need for that part to exist and their duty towards its principles, so foreign to the mundane world. I think that the most eloquent song in this respect is Total Consecration, gathering so much grimness, so much fatalism. The song itself is special for Samael, because it includes nothing else but keyboards and voice. The majestic keyboard parts and rhythms on Blood Ritual seem to foreshadow Xy’s future obsessions.

The artwork is remarkable and perfectly expresses the album’s atmosphere. Twisted, draconic faces sheltered by a dark sanctuary, captured during a blood ritual. Tones are cold, deathly and emanate a shiver of darkness beyond human imagination. Unfortunately, even though I have the original CD of this metal masterpiece, I still haven’t found who is the author of this masterly art piece.

Like the music, the artwork is a combination of old-school and the beginnings of the computer-aided era. A fascinating part is how the band member photos are processed. Vorphalack’s picture is simply frightening!

A few lines above I was calling this album “a metal masterpiece”. So, how can I say this if its song writing is not that great, for instance? As I said, its atmosphere is unique, even where the instruments are rather primitive, each note and drum beat is exactly where it needs to be and perfectly illustrates the lyrics. Another reason is the mixture of styles found on Blood Ritual, condensed in the term of Dark Metal, which was lost in time, even though it might have had a few more things to say.

I know it’s not much of an ending, but since I was a child I have been fascinated by the end of Macabre Operetta... that bass line fading to silence. I think I still regret that they didn’t end the album this way.


13 more Nota: 9


Posted at 18:02 |  14 Noiembrie 2006  | 5 Comments  | 9449 Views

Comment on: Blood Ritual

  • atmosfera satanica, album prin definitie satanic si alte cuvinte mari de comentator sportiv.

    1. Posted by I | 22 Noiembrie 2006 01:11
  • Hahahahaha. Nici tu nu scrii mai bine.

    2. Posted by 13 | 24 Noiembrie 2006 20:31
  • OOOPPS! Iar am gresit! Hahahahahaha!

    3. Posted by 13 | 24 Noiembrie 2006 20:32
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