While I’m sure it’s been by their own choice and almost certainly in their best financial interest, Behemoth have had a bit of a nasty habit of jumping into bed with a different record company every other release they’ve notched on their belt over the years. To usher in their new business relationship with the promiscuous Polish death peddlers, Metal Blade is offering up a small treat for devotees of the band in the form of the seven song Ezkaton EP before their full-length debut on the label drops some time in 2009.
Fans have the option of a discounted digipak version of Ezkaton or a much more impressive, yet modestly priced, limited edition vinyl set that includes four gorgeous seven inch picture discs, a Behemoth logo pendant, and the abovementioned CD all in a deluxe box.
Employing a by the numbers EP format that has been used countless times throughout their career, the Ezkaton set starts off with a variation of an already known Behemoth song (in this case “Chant For Eschaton” from Satanica), followed by a pair of less than remarkable covers (Master’s Hammer and Ramones) and a handful of live tracks (“From The Pagan Vastlands”, “Decade Of Therion”, and again “Chant For Eschaton”), all of which have appeared on other expansion compilations in one shape or another.
On the music front, very little new or noteworthy content is presented on Ezkaton and shouldn’t be used as a starting point for those new to the band. However, from a collectors view point, the beautifully packaged box set is a must have for diehard Behemoth enthusiasts.
I guess it’s a Polish thing to be jumping from label to label constantly. Just look at Vader.
on Nov 30th, 2008 at 23:22I like Behemoth, but this is the most watered down and empty release I’ve ever seen. How many fucking times do they need to put out Chant for eschaton?
on Dec 2nd, 2008 at 14:08Yeah, Satanica is actually my favorite Behemoth album and both “Chant For Eschaton” and “Decade Of Therion” are from that release but have each made an appearance on at least a couple other EPs. I know they are fan favorites (mine too) but they should of put more new or at least unreleased content on here. Get it for the pretty vinyls, not the music.
on Dec 3rd, 2008 at 09:32I checked out of Hotel Behemoth after Zos Kia Cultus. Demigod just had no dynamic. It just felt like overkill and those vocals were fucking comical.
on Dec 7th, 2008 at 22:33