So here is the band’s 11th album, and I thought it might be time to revisit the Austrian goat sex fiends and see what they are up to now. And the result is….more of the same.

Helmuth is still running the show, and the trio still plays a form of blackened death metal with the pendulum swaying between more black and more death over the last few releases and consistently on this release. He also appears to fully strayed away from the band’s more deviant/sexual imagery and themes, into more ritualistic pastures a (transition I may have missed with the last albums). So what we have now is a solid but pretty predictable Behemoth-y (circa 2002-2009) styled band that does what they do well, but with little to make it memorable.

The Jason Suecof (All that Remains, Carnifex, The Black Dahlia Murder, Job For a Cowboy, Deicide), mix gives everything a big, clean, if generic American death metal sound with pummeling drums and crystal clear guitars. Helmuth has a deep, evil bellow and some occasional layered screams, spewing various chants and incantations in various tongues, but the 9 songs (1 being an instrumental), do little to suck you into the ritualistic throes.

From opener “Baphomet”, to the closing title track, there is little to differentiate between songs. There’s hellish blackened blasting (“The Devil’s Son”, “Totenritual”), some some militant mid paced marches (“Totenkult – Exegesis of Deterioration”, “Embracing a Star”) some thing with both (“Swinefever- A Regent of Pigs”, “Apophis- The Black Dragon”) and a few occult atmospherics and appropriate samples. None of it bad by any means, and most of it decent, blasphemous, necksnapping, black/death metal. There’s just nothing here to recall or give you that ‘fuck yeah’, listen again feeling. The songs all sort of bleed into one muddy blast/march mush with little to tell between songs

Frankly, Belphegor are not as scary or dangerous as they once were,  they are less tits, bondage, goats and zombies and more chants, robes and altars. And while  that makes for a polished black/death affair, that does nothing to hurt their legacy, Totenritual does not really stand out or above a crowded genre.

In the past you have released albums almost annually maybe with a 2 year break between albums. it’s been almost 4 years since Blood Magic Necromance- why the longer period for this album? Did your bout with Typoid fever after a South American tour in 2011/2012 play a part?

Yes. I had to undergo a difficult operation which saved my life in the beginning of October the 4th, 2011. It took me almost a year to come back and be able to perform again. First months after the operation were tough, I couldn’t play music, that was frustrating. Also a lot of setbacks during the healing process didn’t make it any easier. RISE TO FALL AND FALL TO RISE, as one of our tracks from the last album BLOOD MAGICK NECROMANCE (2011) says. I’m doing good now. I’m pleased that I am allowed to play guitar, front my band again. It feels just great, and I am thankful for it.

I never worked so hard on another release. I always had in the back of my mind, and feared after my life-threatening illness, it could be the last BELPHEGOR album. So I didn’t want to fukk around, I wanted do things absolutely right.

Any musical aspirations come from that  possible close to death experience?

Absolutely, yes. My health issues and recovery did affect everything regarding the new album, the band, my life. That’s why the songs on CONJURING THE DEAD sound way more brutal, edgy and raw, we put a lot of the epic elements away, concentrated on the sick Death brutality with obscure melodies. Straight in your face. On the new record we celebrate Brutal Death Metal.

Belphegor has been a duo with you and Serpenth handling the guitars/bass/vocals for a while now- who did drums for the new album?

Marthyn Jovanovic, a talented guy from Austria. He is the same session drummer who played on BLOOD MAGICK NECROMANCE. When we begin a new album the masterplan is to develop, get even more intense. We’ve had the honor of working with many skilled musicians over the years.

How did Glen Benton and Attila Cishar get involved for the guest vocals on legions of destruction?

I had this vision for a long time. It was just to please my ego, hahahrrr. Truly, it’s really cool to me. I appreciate their vocal styles and what their work brought to the extreme Metal community.

I wanted to have those two guys, not just any dudes from some other bands. My plan was either them or fukk the plan.I think I first asked Attila about it in 2007, as we recorded BONDAGE GOAT ZOMBIE.With DEICIDE we did two big tours, one in the US one we conquered and devastated Europe. And Glen liked the idea, what was great to me. There was always this schedule

problem,they were on tour, or we were on tour, it was difficult, but finally it worked out. Both bands in the beginning were very important and inspiring to BELPHEGOR.

It’s an honor that they put their magcik on this track. Hails and thanks in their direction…

For three albums, Andy Classen was producer , then one album with Peter Tagtgren for Blood Magic Necromance and now, Erik Rutan for Conjuring the Dead- why the change in producers for the last two albums?

All three did an amazing job and it was an honor to work with them. We always change studios, formulas, keep everything interesting and the passion to create extreme sounds burning.

As I started creating the new sound collages I had a goal. To concentrate on more direct and aggressive Death Metal with our trademark Black Metal atmosphere and obscure melodies. I always wanted to have that US brutal sound for a BELPHEGOR Lp. That’s why we decided for Erik Rutan as the producer.

With Erik, the collaboration was just awesome, way better than I ever expected. My guitars never sounded so precise on a BELPHEGOR album. If you turn the volume all the way up, it’s as if the band is in the same room with you and blasting the shit outta hell.

So what did Erik Rutan bring to the table differently than Classen or Tagtgren-both respected producers in their own right?

I don’t like to compare albums nor producers/studios, man. Each time is different when we start a new project. Erik came up with many valuable ideas. For example, I played the classical guitar pickings first time with an acoustic guitar, that was an idea from Erik. He also motivated us to track ultra tight performances. He was on top of his game with the production. Everything sounds exactly as we wanted it to. It was the right decision to fly over to the US and track the album in St. Petersburg, Florida with Erik. CONJURING THE DEAD is one of our strongest releases.

For some reason, despite 10 albums and 20 years of existence, Belphegor never seems to get the acclaim and status of many death metal peers with less albums and time under their belt? why is that? Being from Austria? the provocative nature of the bands art and lyrics? the goat/bdsm stuff??

I don’t care that much. I can’t exactly say for what reasons it’s this way. Thing is, the Death/ Black Metal scene is full of mainstream sounds recently. The rebellious brutal approach, the fukk you all attitude, resist against everything outlook, it went to the dogs a long time ago. That’s how we see our role, to be different in this stale scene. What anyone else thinks won’t affect me. I just do my own thing, walk my own path and decide for myself with my own rules, in my own world. Some people like it and support us, which I really appreciate..a huge honor to me. Some hate it or are offended, all fine by me.

Some would say that Belphegor have got too melodic over the last couple of albums, but the new album seems to really bring back the ‘nasty’. What was the mindset going into album number 10 and the claims Belphegor has been ‘playing it safe’ since you switched to Nuclear Blast? 

We have not “played it safe”. We only write and play what we want to.I wanted to have a more Death Metal approach on this Lp, more edgy, raw and  of course brutal, all the typical BELPHEGOR trademarks. It was time to return to our roots.

Once again, I really don’t compare albums. Each time when we start a project we experiment within our style. We’ve changed studios, producers, always trying new things. Sometimes we are successful, sometimes not, but all in all I am really pleased with our discography and especially with the new slasher. CONJURING THE DEAD was a tough raid, can’t wait til it gets released and I have my physical Album in my hands. That’s always a very special moment to me, then I get to see all the hard work, the sweat the sacrifice, that it all was worth it.

There’s a really heavy occult ritualistic sound on the now album. “Lucifer, Take her”, the title track the closing number “Pactum in Aeternum” are truly creepy as opposed to more overt sexual and perverse themes.

Thanks for liking our chaotic sounds. I was and still am impressed by the darker aspects of humanity. All that is different and non-conformist. I describe myself as atheist. I mean, there is a lot of obscurity and possession in BELPHEGOR, still is, always was, otherwise you couldn’t do that for 21 years.

The thing with art in my opinion is, only the excessive people did something that counted and lasted. You can’t sing about hell if you’ve never been there. Look at the history of art, it doesn’t matter–painter, composer, author, actor, whatever– the ones who were close to insanity, often in delirium, on drugs in kind of  “their own twilight zone”, were the best and still remain.

I use the philosophy about Sathan/ Lucifer – the Lightbearer in our lyrical content as a proud, exalted, majestic figure who resisted against all influences. A seducer, tempter. One to make his own decisions, walk his own path as a rebel, a mocker against the masses. Victorious!!

Who performed some of the screams and chants on those tracks- the female screams in particular sent shivers down my spine? Were they recorded or a sample from a movie?

No samples. That’s my girlfriend, Alexandra Van Weitus. She can scream like a demon….this girl has power, haharrrr.

You can watch the vocal trailer on youtube and also on the bonus DVD with the digipak edition that has +70 minutes of running time. There’s a lot on the DVD. We filmed a video for the title track high in the mountains of Austria. I’m proud of it, it’s our best video thus far. Ms. Makani Terror, a fetish/ tattoo model from Germania, took the role of the possessed Sukkubus. She’s quite an interesting woman and it was great to have here for the clip. It’s just awesome and I hope our supporters will enjoy it as we do. You also get to see studio/ recording making of’s, Metal traveling, our rehearsal cave bunker with Mr.Swinefever and 6 live tracks. Check it out!!

You guys are known for your album artwork. You used Seth again for the  artwork, as he did for Pestapokalypse, what made you switch from J Luetke from Blood Magic Necromance?  Are you looking for a particular image after the album is named or does the artwork come first?

Musick thrones above all, and it’s what remains in the end….in eternity. I also worked with Seth in 2005 for the PESTAPOKALYPSE VI art, released by the end of 2006. He did a great job.

The art on CONJURING THE DEAD is a conceptual depiction of the world of terror we actually do live in. It’s about how I see the human race nowadays, how we destroy life/nature, poison ourselves in a variety of ways for many reasons. We work hard to fukk up everything and dig our own graves and destroy the earth in the name of greed and might. On top our obscene – demonic –lyrical content. People that support BELPHEGOR find the lyric sheets in the booklet of the physical Cd. I encourage them to form their own interpretations, too.

Any tour plans to support Conjuring the Dead?

In Europe we concentrate on festivals for 2014-2015. We are doing approximately 20 open airs and indoor festivals this year. Norway, Sweden, Jakarta, France, Germania are already successfully conquered. There is a lot coming on the map like Japan, China, South Africa. Always great to march into new territories, big challenges. Mid-September through mid-October we’re doing our 9th North American tour. First time that we headline a full tour in the US, that will be great to return and conquer the states again. Direct support is from our Greek Metal brothers in ROTTING CHRIST. BEHEADED from Malta and SVART CROWN from France are also a part of the bill. At the end of the year, a  festival tour through South America.

Each BELPHEGOR concert is a surprise man, we are known for brutal stage rituals. Many great places offer outstanding crowds, especially those who do not often have brutal bands arriving on their fronts. 

 Last words?

Thank you for the space.  I also want to say thank you to the people who listen to our records, buy merch at the shows, and all who attend BELPHEGOR live rituals. An honor – this horror..

Helmuth: Yes, we made it. The wait is over, the new monolith, entitled Blood Magick Necromance, is out in North America, almost worldwide. If [you are] lusting for extreme musick, march to your local record store to grab your copy and support BELPHEGOR. Now!!!

What reactions, if any, do you expect from the release?

European release date was in January. The feedback is amazing, both from the [people] and the media. Just briliiant man. I mean, we [have played] since the beginning in 1993 under the BELPHEGOR banner, [and] the masterplan and final aim was always to become mightier and more intense. We all have exercised a lot on our instruments the last decade, to get tighter as [a] live band, to improve our playing and compositorical abilities. Besides, we are one of the hardesd touring live bands. [You] know, the music comes first and dominates everything. Blood Magick Necromance is a new chapter and a very special BELPHEGOR album to me.

The album is distinctly Belphegor, but it seems you’ve incorporated more of an evil groove into the songs this time.

That was the masterplan as we started with the songwriting/rehearsals. There are a lot of new elements and structures added, to explore our chaos sound and take it to the next level. We also changed the studio and entered the Abyss Studios in Sweden with producer Peter Tägtgren. The sound wall is brilliant and fits perfeckt to the eight sound collages. Our most varied material so far, epic, heavy as fukk and majestic. The chorus melody from “In Blood – Devour This Sanctity” is inspired by the classical composer, Johannes Brahms, “Hungarian Dance #1 (1833 – 1897)”, [you] also hear a violin there. Or the title track, a seven minutes opus, we worked eight months on this complex hymn and arranged acribical everything in each detail. You find everything there: spoken words, chants, choirs, grunts, acoustic guitars, classical harmonies, epic orchestrations, [and] doom parts which turn to ultra blast beats. I’m really proud of this massive song. The most difficult [and] varied track we ever created.  Also new is that we ended the album with a high speed riff attack, entitled “Sado Messiah”, not with a slow track as we did on the last albums.  Blood Magick Necromance is exactly how we wanted to sound in 2011.

The video for “Impaled Upon the Tongue of Sathan” just went online [recently].  Can you tell me a bit about the making of it?

Yes, all we wanted was an archaic disgusting bloodbath!  The clip is contrary to life, it’s total anti – it was not about shocking. Absolutely low-budget to get the real raw feeling while taking it all in….  We made it.  We know what we want to project with our sound and visuals.  The lyrics are connected to the visuals, the video, the stage and everything.  We seek for the utmost punishment, through anti-Christian sentiment which reflects our loyalty and honor.

The video was insanely bloody, gory and sacrilegious.

Imagine it… A bound and whipped girl covered in ash and paint, Hecate (breakcore Goddess and Pro-Domina) tied up tight, in pentagram bondage (as [you] see on the cover), naked in the midst of fall.  Liters of blood upon her face – this was possession.  An industrial garage high in the mountains, never ending blood drenched debauch.  No remorse, she went through it all….as an honor.

Serpenth said, ‘The blood cut deeper than any drug.’  How so?

Some of the crew were hard on drugs…. The track playing over and over.  Sikk – a haunting ritual.  Barren, glistening with blood and piss – this is reality – and art – and BELPHEGOR.  What can be more intense?  This is a pact, just like the album.  An onslaught of passion and power, necro-romance.  Sacrilegious… the anti-Christ is always important!  The sentiment, the sacrament.

It was released on Bloody-Disgusting.com.  Are you a horror fan yourself?

We hosted it there to get away from the censors and moralizers.  Nuclear Blast America had some fears that Youtube would remove it…. that was the whole idea of a different server. Horror movies, yes, I adore a lot of of this stuff. I dig zombies; a few days ago was viewing Romero’s Diary of the Dead. Fukking George, mannnn… harrrr.  I don’t watch TV, hate it as much as religion. Total propaganda for the sheep.  Fukking hell, what about “commercial breaks” —- No, not my thing….!  I support films, I wait on a delivery of “The Collector II”…. totally into it.  The Texas Chainsaw Massacre – orginal. Classic. The remakes [are] also cool by me, truly shocking and full of morbid violence.  That is the way horror is meant to be. Leatherface.  The figure.  The force.  The chainsaw!  Mind blowing…man!

Walpurgis Rites – Hexenwahn was released in October 2009, and before that was Bondage Goat Zombie in 2008.  Belphegor is an incredibly productive/active band.

Yes. We are totally into the process.  The band, the musick, the attitude. Our passion and blood. And now we have Blood Magick Necromance!!! Magnificent and our utmost dangerous offering yet.

From where do you get inspiration?

Our mission is about extreme metal. 17 years of musick and excess and BELPHEGOR is still here to celebrate supreme death/black metal art. The passion, the hellfire is burning, we are motivated and ready to take the world by storm.

Your world tour to support the album [has begun].

The core is ready to kick serious ass. Nonstop worldwide shredding. Starting with terrorizing North America again, with DEICIDE, later SEPULTURA…followed by European open airs and a 26 date tour through Europe with DEICIDE, where we cross alot of important cities.  Can’t wait to celebrate the new tracks on stage, in a raw live situation, we shred everything to death. BELPHEGOR brings the Devil, the flesh, the chaos direct to your town.

Are there any places particularly that you are looking forward to playing?

Yeah sure, we never get the possibility to bring our chaos sound to Australia and Asia, so its about time to nuke there.  Hope we can make it in 2011, would be amazing.

What music will you be listening to on the tour?

NWOBHM, Danzig, Mozart, Johnny Cash, Exodus, KISS, Mayhem, AC/DC…list is endless.

What’s in the immediate future for Belphegor?

At the moment all is focused on the new album. Musick is passion.  Magick…it is the highest art. Thanks for the space in Teeth Of The Divine, and supporting BELPHEGOR.  Check out our new album, Blood Magick Necromance. An Honor This Horror!

www.belphegor.at

www.nuclearblast.de

Once you get past the production values and listen to the music, you will find Belphegor is in fact leaning back toward black, with intensity through atmospherics as well as furious riffing. A massive dose of black as pitch joins the balancing act that is Dark Funeral meets Morbid Angel so be prepared to be stomped and soothed with melodic flair and bombastic might. “Discipline Through Punishment,” one of the killer tracks here, nicely defines the rewards of listening. Layers of brutal riffing and punishing drumming can be pared away to reveal a level of technicality that is not thrown in your face.

Harder, faster, heavier, more powerful, Belphegor pumped up to new heights of menace, with cool riffs that hook you in and great atmospherics that swallow you and relentless pummeling that hits you while you are down. This is like getting hit by a 102 car freight train, relentless. The breathing spaces are not long enough for you to get out of the way of the next car. It is at once less monotonous and more driven to surprise sucker punches that strike out from the repetition. Have no fear, a song title like “Impalement Without Mercy” would still have a place here on this album and yes they are still shredding for Satan, and I think the fallen one was listening and bestowed new gifts, beautiful melodies abound, time to see if the poison is sweet enough to lure in new servants. He hears your yearnings.

Shrieks are not as piercing and I would like to hear more clean deep chanting, like in the title track, but overall another masterful vocal performance. Helmuth remains a personal favorite. The guitar playing is top notch, as is the bass playing, of which we get full enjoyment thanks to the production quality. There are obvious rewards to clean and polished. There are many memorable slow parts with added vile overtones. Peter Tägtgren is the master, ignore my whines.

“Blood Magick Necromance” is my vote for best song, even though magic has no k. The title track is clearly the icing on the cake and shows many months of hard work coming to fruition. Easily one of Belphegor’s best ever compositions. It’s all in there, everything that makes Belphegor great. This song is oozing with inspiration, and some of that inspiration percolated through the rest of the album. Other noteworthy tracks include “Discipline Through Punishment” and “In Blood – Devour This Sanctity.” Epic and majestic. Embrace idolatry, worship at the altar of Helmuth and get the blessing of Satan. “Hail, devourer of blood ‒ blessed with fire and knowledge.” Has the luciferian infestation taken hold yet? It is still treatable. Listen to Stryper for one hour twice daily making sure to do so while wearing your spandex bee suit and if that doesn’t work go see a priest, just don’t go alone, bring a witness. If you do not wish to be saved at this time follow the swarm of rats to the altar of Helmuth, insert cd and press continuous play.

“Das gluehende Kruzifix…
Crawl to me
Lass mich fliegen
Kneel before me
Lass mich dich lieben”

Prepare to be punished. The death / black metal titans reign supreme.

Helmuth is not the type to just sit back and admire his laurel crown, that is not the Belphegor way. At first listen no monstrous moments that seize your attention, it is more in the details, leaving the overall feel a bit flat. Melodic for the sake of melodic does not work for anyone this side of Yngwie, the colossal wall of energy is needed to ramp up the intensity level and the relentless repetitive riffing that really gets you into the groove and humming along in line with the ritual needs to be the main element. The songs are not as overtly dynamic as times past, but more luminous in the details and a patient listener is rewarded.

The intense low grunts of “Hell’s Ambassador” do not appear and I do miss the chants, and the curiously groaned “Der Geistertreiber” does not fit the bill. The sirens do not help matters. It is also a simple slow song. “Enthralled Toxic Sabbath” is a slow one that keeps your attention, the title track ends with church bells ringing as it burns. As a whole, think “D.rowned I.n E.xcrements” instead of “The Crown Massacre” and as you listen you will hear that it is closer to the latter than the former but fills the need for long time fans as well well as newcomers that jumped on over the last few albums. You could plot a direct line of say “The Requiem of Hell” to “Bleeding Salvation” in terms of guitar tone and style, both are definitely Belphegor. Is there one on the album that fits that tradition or are they now building a new tradition spawned from say “Justine: Soaked In Blood”. “Hexenwahn – Totenkult” fits more that style.

I’d like the overly clean production to take the bulk of the blame and say many of these songs will transfer well to their live set, but ultimately what we have here is a very good Naglfar album. Belphegor has been a mainstay on my top ten lists and there is stiff competition this year, but I’m leaving a light on for them. There will be a great many replays of this disc between now and January and I’m hoping it grows on me.

It took us nearly 8 hours to get to Chicago with a couple stops, and a couple more stops to take pics of some really ridiculous things you see in the rural midwest areas.

Epicurean was already playing as we walked in, and we managed to catch most of their last song. What I heard sounded promising, but I was buzzing pretty good after a couple excellent beers I had at a place called Rock Bottom Restaurant and Brewery. Good food and even better beer. I highly recommend it if you’re ever in Chicago.

Next up was Warbringer, and they played a short set due to time restrictions. 4 or maybe 5 songs. “Living in a Whirlwind” is the only one I remember for sure. Killer tune from the new album. Their set was very high energy. That’s twice I’ve seen them put on a great yet short set. Vocalist John Kevill spent the rest of the show wandering around chatting it up with people. I thought that was pretty cool.

Belphegor. I’ve never cared for this band on disc, and wasn’t really looking forward to sitting through them live, so I decided it was a good time to go out and smoke (considering the state of Illinois went non-smoking last year), only to find out that there was no re-entry. I asked if they had a designated smoking area, to which I got a “nope.” “Seriously?” “NO!” OK, fuck you asshole. No need to be a dick about it. So now I’m pissed, and have to sit through Belphegor, drinking $6 beers, not smoking, and suddenly tired as hell. I only got 4 hours of sleep then had an 8 hour drive. I was exhausted. They were literally putting me to sleep. The vocalist busted out some sort of leather mask for the last song, but it didn’t help out their plain and lackluster performance. Yawn. Literally.

Exodus was up next, and had me going pretty good for the first couple tunes, “Bonded by Blood” and “Iconoclasm”. After this though, I spent the majority of the rest of their set nodding in and out of consciousness. I was totally hating myself for not buying one of those 5 hour energy shots. Rob Dukes mentioned he had a cold, and you could tell as he wasn’t quite the ball of energy that the live Exodus vids proved he was. Though they still put on a pretty good set with decent energy, and closed it out of course with The Toxic Waltz. The only other song that I remember for sure was “Blacklist”. Dukes does Zetro’s material better than Zetro. Also, I remember he initiated a wall of death. It was the first time I’ve ever seen it in person, and must say it looked fucking brutal.

Kreator. Man, I had been waiting for this for so long. But, as with the last two, I was nodding in and out through their set. If I could have gotten down on the floor I probably would have been fine, but it was way too packed, so I chilled at a table drinking those $6 beers. They opened with “Hordes of Chaos”, “Warcurse”, “Extreme Aggression”, “Phobia” and “Voices of the Dead”. I was up for those, but then lost my wind and started nodding out. “Enemy of God”, “Violent Revolution”, “Betrayer”, “People of the Lie”, “Coma of Souls”, “Destroy What Destroys You” , and “Pleasure to Kill” were all played I know for sure. The encore was “Amok Run”, “Riot of Violence”, “Flag of Hate” and “Tormentor”. Good energy throughout, and Mille really put forth a lot of effort to get the crowd going. At one point between songs, Mille was talking and there were no lights except this purple one behind him, which was illuminating the smoke on stage – it looked like he had a purple “aura” emitting from him – it was cool as fuck. At one point, he proclaimed Chicago to be one the metal capitals of the US. Can’t say I disagree, the crowd much more active than any I’ve ever seen in Kansas City or St.Louis.

It was a good show, but kind of marred by my exhaustion and seriously marred by my inability to smoke. I’ll never go back to the House of Blues. On top of that, their beer selection was fucking horrid. I was also kind of pissed that I didn’t get a Kreator shirt, as I didn’t really care for the selection, and the ones I did want were either out of stock in my size, or the old lady wanted, so I ended up getting a Kreator beanie. I was also surprised that Kreator was the only band that wasn’t selling patches. T-shirts and beanies only. I did however pick up a sweet Exodus shirt.

They do like to slow down now and then, to draw out the suffering a bit before they go back to grinding your bones to powder. When they do slow down you hear a much underrated rhythm section that tends to get lost in the chaos when they go blast crazy. Helmuth sounds like he has been gargling with the very forces of Hell itself, vacillating between a low growl and a higher rasp. They remind me of a combination of Dissection meets Vader while hanging from the ceiling by its nipples. Sex is a big thing for these guys as you see in the glorious song titles “Bondage Goat Zombie” and “Sexdictator Lucifer”. (If a woman ever calls you this in bed guys, marry her or I will. She’s clearly a keeper.) This album is all about the agony and the ecstasy drawn from it. It works because by the time it ends I am in pain and yet I want more.

They were even nice enough to include a bonus DVD with some interesting stuff. It has the uncensored version of the “Bondage Goat Zombie” video, which if you like a woman in a gasmask and fetishized nun outfit you will love. There is some of the shooting of the video, which is just Helmuth on floor with a cat o nine tails and a spiked leather hood. There is rehearsal footage and even footage of them recording the album. To be honest I could have lived without those parts but more is better. The best parts of the live footage from a festival and a section devoted to the fans showing their love for Belphegor. Half of it seems to be their female fans in various states of exposure. I have no complaints about that. This would be a great deal if it just had the album, but the DVD is the icing on the cake. A very perverted and evil album.

Once more Helmuth offers vague bursts of gibberish in his godlike grunting and shrieking, and the rest of the band fills in ritual chanting. Vocals are always a high point on a Belphegor disc. There are deep clear vocals on “The Sukkubus Lustrate” and whispers on “Der Rutenmarsch”, which harkens back all the way to “Vomit Upon The Priest.” The aural assault on christian values continues unabated, with powerful, intricate guitar lines despite the loss of Sigurd and overwhelmingly punishing drumming that at times is as oppressive as helicopter rotor blades whooshing down on you. Once again fast and slow, brutal and seductive, ominous and oppressive compositions are on display, and any true fan of the band has no squirm room for complaints. This is one band that need not evolve, just perfect the style and ramp up the skill level. “Chronicles of Crime” is the one most different.

I oscillate between wanting to severely punish the monotheists for 2000 years of intolerance and persecution and living up to the pagan values of individual freedom to worship how you wish and whom you wish. When I wish to get worked up in a rage because I am in the former mindset I listen to Belphegor and embrace the christian mindset of do unto others as they have done unto you, eradicate them all, lead the lambs to the slaughter, sacrifice them all to the pagan gods, Belphegor leads the way. When I am not in that midset I listen to Belphegor anyway, shred for satan.

The jump from Napalm to Nuclear Blast is probably as significant in terms of exposure as the jump from Last Episode to Napalm. With this band I have no fear of them watering down the delivery to gain a wider acceptance. They continue to go their own way, no compromise. Anyone can beat a crowd into submission with an oppressive wall of noise. Belphegor instead revs up the crowd into a frenzy with a wall of pure energy. Intricate and precise while maintaining full throttle intensity is a Belphegor trademark, so is the raging behemothian roar of vocalist Helmuth, along with his shriek that would intimidate a banshee. Vocals leave plenty of room for instrumentation and the drums and guitars are so powerful that they are not overpowered by the vocals. The flip side is also true; his vocals easily match the power of the instrumentation.
Epic, crushing, voluminous sound through densely layered guitar rhythms makes an outstanding foundation. Add increased technicality without sacrificing intensity, high-speed blastbeats and punishing double bass drums. Top it off with Helmuth’s incredible vocals, once again featuring death grunts and blackened roars to perfection. And, of course, Sigurd always shreds.

In terms of Belphegor worship I was a late bloomer. I have been a diehard fan only since 1997, something to keep in mind as you read this review. Writing this as a fanboy, you could think I am overstating their greatness once again, and once again you would be mistaken. Belphegor is simply mandatory. That doesn’t have the same ring to it as “mandatory Motorhead” but if you repeat it enough times it will sink in to your subconscious and the next time you walk into your local metal store you will know instinctively what to look for. In 2000, when Necrodaemon Terrorsathan came out, the two previous releases were in regular rotation in my world. Fast forward to 2006 and the release of Pestapokalypse VI . Now I can confirm that the five previous discs have been in heavy rotation and not many bands can equal that. Something else that not many bands can brag about is that each has been incrementally superior to the previous so each time an album comes out they really are firing on all cylinders.

 Creatively Pestapokalypse VI is no exception, not only their finest to date, but once again one of the top 10 metal releases of the year, on anybody’s list. Favorite songs are “Angel of Retribution”, “Seyn Todt in Schwartz”, and “Sanctus Perversum”. This is the fourth straight Belphegor album to earn a top five pick for the year.

With a hint of black metal (a few atmospheric synth laced passages, tremolo picked riffs, biting layered harmonies), but generally steeped in a swirling crossbreed of US brutality and European songwriting, Belphegor are perfectly paced, visceral and merciless. Immediate comparisons to Hate Eternal or Krisiun with a Swedish tint, come to mind, due to the hyperspeed of the material, but where bands like the recently reviewed Belef and even Krisiun themselves (although they have shown some control of late) lock into a single pace for an albums entirety, Belphegor inject some European fueled lurches, acidic solos and atmospheric touches to balance out the sonic sandblasting and littering the album with a heinously evil personality.

Belphegor’s sodomizing style starts with “The Cruzifixus – Anus Dei” and it’s typically obscure introductory sample, before an expulsion of razor sharp, buzzing blast beats; the overall tone of Belphegor at times reminded me slightly of Necrophobic at times, but with one death metal boot crammed up Christ’s ass. The assault continues for the scathing “Bleeding Salvation” which initially has more of a death metal feel, with deeper riffs, but soon overlays the chaos with a surprisingly epic choral arrangement and synth line. Expecting a reprieve, I was instead soundly beaten by the splinter in your pee-hole agony of “Fornicationium Et Immundus Diabolus”. It’s not until “Sepulchre of Hypocrisy” where I can unclench every fiber of my being and relax somewhat to the crawling Morbid Angel inspired menace the track imbues. Some serpentine melody oozes into the title track’s chorus, and the seething “Swarm of Rats”, crossing over into Scandinavian Marduk/Dark Funeral territory, but everything still stays in line with the album’s overall eviscerating death metal nature.

Another lumbering reprieve arrives for the massive start of “Kings Shall be Kings”, but the track’s surprising early eloquence is annihilated by a knee wilting chorus with vocalist Helmuth giving a genuinely evil performance that’s neither as synthetic as Behemoth’s Nergal nor as hokey as Glenn Benton, but has the same multi-demonic effect. In fact, if the over produced Demigod didn’t sit with you too well, I’d highly recommend Goatreich-Fleshcult. The tortured monkish chants that lace album closer “Festum Asinorum/Chapter 2” gives the material the hellish ambience that complements the velocity of the music, ending the album with a fitting climax.

Goatreich-Fleshcult is one of those rare albums that has me a quivering mess for its duration and short of breath upon completion; a damn fine exercise in death metal extremity.

This is of course supreme death/ black art from Austria. From the screaming nuns to the chanted vocals they deliver violence and fury at full velocity. Once again excellent drumming, intricate guitar leads, and screams and growls to perfection. They have cranked it up in speed to Panzer level and added utter brutality. The production is clearer so each instrument stands out. The drum especially sounds great. Belphegor has also moved closer to mostly death metal from Swedish black, just don’t lose the dual vocals. The songs demonstrate long hours of practice and are the most memorable to date, and despite the speed they are always under control. “The Goatchrist” has dominating guitars with hyperspeed melodies and about equal time to each vocal style. “Demonic Staccato Erection” is more sedate with brutal drumming that is not quite so frantic with heavy cymbal work. The rhythm guitar is slow and Helmuth employs an inbetween style of vocals at the end. “Paradise Regained” has a very brief atmospheric intro then pulverizing intensity, the uberpanzer. The bass stands out more as well. “Fukk the Blood of Christ” starts off slow and ominous, the drums kick in slow, chugging rhythm guitar then blastbeats and minimalist guitar leads- high pitched squeals and lengthy slower sections without words to end one of my favorite songs pre Lucifer.

Having one song that surpasses most previous efforts but gets blown away by most everything else on this album demonstrates how far they have climbed. The title track is next and it’s back to pulverizing nuns. “The Sin Hellfucked” has clearly heard bass, heavy cymbol use, chaotic swirling lead guitars, and a Voivodesque ending. “Fleischrequiem” is a highlight of the album with acoustic folkish guitars and chanted vocals in addition to the black and death styles and some anguished screams along with fast drumming. Easily one of the best of 2003.

The bonus tracks include three tracks from 1994’s 7 inch including a cover of “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” and three tracks newly recorded in 1998, including an “outbreak of Evil” cover and a track that later appeared on Necrodemon Terrorsathan called “Diabolical Possession.” The dominant vocal style is very low guttural grunts American death style with plenty of screamed vocals reminiscent of early Kreator. The music is very heavy and brutal guitars with aggressive drumming. As with most American style death, the songs tend to blend together, with memorable pieces here and there throughout the album, but without individual uniqueness for each song.

The album taken as a whole entity is strong, with memorable moments being “The Rapture of Cremation” and “Engulfed in Eternal Frost,” the former for its slow passages the later for its lightening fast backbone, both equally well written. My favorite song, “Kruzifixion” is a 1994 version of 1991’s demo’s title track and has an early Celtic Frost feel. It is also the song with the most black metal elements. So, what’s the verdict? It does not matter which version you get, just get one of them.

For those new to the band, Belphegor play black/death and can be described as Morbid Angel meets Dark Funeral. They say their music “hits like the tip of a lance in Navarene’s flesh.” That is a pretty significant statement. That one lance thrust has obviously had lasting ramifications to this very day. How does Blutsabbath stand in comparison? It is basically a continuation of the sound of their debut album, The Last Supper, no evolution, but refinement is obvious. Is it possible to sound more polished without giving up that raw undercooked brutal sound?

The guitars are more prominent than on the debut, with some nice memorable leads and the songs have more dynamic structures. The dominant vocal style is black screams with the death growl all but abandoned, absent entirely on some songs, minimal usage on others. The vocals are at their best on songs that combine both styles. Overall the drums are a bit more blackened than on The Last Supper but it’s not straight blastbeats throughout. “Abschworung” sets the standard for the album in terms of guitar leads and their is nice interplay between vocal styles. “Blutsabbath” is a great slow song while “The Requiem Of Hell” is a great fast song. “Path of Sin” ends with an atmospheric passage that also closes out the album. Is Belphegor as significant as that lance? Only time will tell…

If one looked at the packaging or at their costuming it would be fair to say old school black metal, but that would be selling them short. What they are is brutal death mixed with ultra fast black with a technical aspect unusual for both. When I think of brutal death I don’t think of musical complexity, but these guys do. Not only do all the overused adjectives for extreme metal apply to Belphegor, they actually seem inadequate here. The musicianship is excellent, and the vocals, often a weak point for extreme bands, are outstanding. They refer to their vocals as grunts and growls. The main style is an excellent low growl in the death style with black metal feeling. They are among the best “satanic” vocals I’ve heard and they make me envision a biped goat with a microphone.

At thirty five and a half minutes, the album is short, but their are no weak songs. “Necrodaemon Terrorsathan” “SBSR” “Cremation of Holiness” and “Necrodaemon Terrorsathan part II” all stand out, but the album is strong from beginning to end, one of the best of 2000. If you are a fan of past Belphegor releases or a fan of Dark Funeral, Marduk, Dissection, etc. this release is destined to be in your CD player permanently.