_ _______ _ ...:... _ _______ _
___ / .:::::::::::. \ ___
| / .. (:::::::::::::) .. \ |
| . .:::::.`:::::::::::'.:::::. . |
| .::.. `:::.::':::`::.:::' ..::. |
_ _______ | .::' ::::':::::`:::: `::. | _______ _
\\ | | :: `' ::':`:: `' :: | | //
\ | | `:. .::' . `::. .:' | | /
. | | .::::::..::::' ... `::::..::::::. | | .
| | `:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::' | |
.... | | `:' `::::: :: :: :::::' `:' | | ....
| ' | : `. ': :: :: :: :: :` .' : | ` |
|.....: . .......: :: :: :: :: : ...... . : ....|
. ...................: : :: :: :: :: : : ................. .
_____________:_____________ _____________:_____________
_ ___\` __ /_\` _______/_\` __ _/_\` /___ _
// __ / (/ ___/ (/ _ (/ /_______/\
_ _ /_________ ___________ ______/\ _ ______________/\__/_ _
\\\\\_________\__/\_________\__/\_____/\_____/\____________/ ///
- -\-\-----------\__/----------\__/-------\_____/---------------/-/- -
- -------------------: : :. ..:: :: . :------------------ -
: : :......: :: :` ': :: : .....: : :
___ _ | | : ` ' : | | _ ___
_\---------- : | -------- : B E R C : -------- | : ----------/_
/_\ . : . ..:.. ..:.. . : . /_\
/// . . : : . . \\\
/: :\
/:: Artist :: Amen Corner ::\
:: Album :: Written by the Devil ::
:: Year :: 2024 ::
:: __ _ _ __ ::
-:--\\-----------------------------------------------------------------//--:-
:: \ / ::
:: . Genre :: Black Metal Source :: CD . ::
:: Label :: Metal Army R.date :: 2024-07-06 ::
_::__ Cat.nr. :: ARMY 104-CD S.date :: 2024-06-07 __::_
::// \\::
::/---------------------------------------------------------------------\::
:: ::
/: Encoder :: LAME 3.100 -V0 :\
..: Bitrate :: avg. 262kbps :..
. Quality :: 44.1 kHz/Joint Stereo .
. Size :: 99.10 MB .
. .
__ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __
.\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////.
+/ -\------- | | ----\ tracklist /---- | | -------/- \+
/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: 1. Intro 1:24 ::
:: 2. The War of the Antichrist 5:38 ::
:: 3. The Protectors 5:28 ::
:: 4. Fall and Ascension 7:27 ::
:: 5. Signal from Beyond 5:34 ::
:: 6. Inferno 3:10 ::
:: 7. Written by the Devil 6:45 ::
:: 8. The Splendor of Your Presence 4:34 ::
:: 9. Lucifer, a Suprema Luz da Manha 4:45 ::
:: 10. Destroyer of Worlds (Bathory cover) 5:13 ::
:: ::
:: ::
:: ------- ::
.. >> 49:58 ..
__ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __
.\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////.
+/ -\------- | | ----\ release notes /---- | | -------/- \+
/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: ::
:: The unquestionable destiny written by the hand of Death ::
:: reasserts itself on this seventh full-length album by way of ::
:: Curitiba, Brazil-borne black metal quartet AMEN CORNER who ::
:: remind us who it is that brought men down to the realm of the ::
:: dead, freed us in their fall away from him. Having already ::
:: nailed a potential classics attuned (yet quality of life ::
:: improved) vision of a future-self roughly eight years ago these ::
:: æold schoolÆ black metal fellowes return to restate and refine ::
:: said approach, commanding a first wave inspired early second ::
:: wave borne voice on æWritten by the Devilæ. Fans of the ancient ::
:: mid-paced forms of black metal whoÆve no qualms with clean but ::
:: characteristic vision should appreciate the simple efficacy of ::
:: the old ways in their hands. ::
:: ::
:: Amen Corner formed circa 1992 as one of the first black metal ::
:: bands (alongside Murder Rape) from their region of southern ::
:: Brazil (Paranß) wherein their early sound took inspiration from ::
:: the first wave (Venom, mostly) and non-Scandinavian traditions ::
:: of the early second wave (Samael, Mortuary Drape) not unlike ::
:: the early efforts of Mystifier up far north and Impurity ::
:: towards the center of the continent. Today these bands are all ::
:: generally well accounted for, most allÆve reissued/remastered ::
:: and reformed their classics, but only their early-to-mid 90Æs ::
:: Cogumelo released entries breached the perceptions of more than ::
:: die-hard collectors prior to the mid-2000Æs, at least per my ::
:: own experience. Amen Corner were neither the best known group ::
:: nor the most original among that loosely gathered list but ::
:: their first demo tape (æEternal Propheciesæ, 1992) and debut LP ::
:: (æFall, Ascension, Dominationæ, 1993) were a bit less sloppy ::
:: and less prone to copping riffs as many of their perceived ::
:: peers at the time. I particularly appreciate their work with ::
:: original drummer Paulo Costa as his style and approach to ::
:: double-bass drumming was a big part of their signature for the ::
:: span of four releases throughout the 90Æs. Costa and second ::
:: guitarist ManΘ had left by 1996 and in their wake the peak of ::
:: the bandÆs classic era remains the hugely underrated æIachol Ve ::
:: Tehilßæ (1995), the point where some faster-paced pieces and ::
:: their use of keyboards lead to a more thrashing and menacing ::
:: version of their original sound. Most folks interested in the ::
:: band today are primarily interested in that original 90Æs era ::
:: style and sound. ::
:: ::
:: By 2000 most all of the bandÆs line-up had been replaced beyond ::
:: founding guitarist Murm·rio and thatÆd meant the signature ::
:: sound of Amen Corner was resigned to mid-paced æold schoolÆ ::
:: black metal with non-specific production values and little ::
:: continuity beyond the artists guitar work. I am not a fan of ::
:: this era of the band but it is worthwhile to give æLeviathan ::
:: Demiseæ (2010) a closer listen as the bandÆd returned to ::
:: Cogumelo for their next two records and seemed intent on ::
:: reviving their classic style back then with returning original ::
:: vocalist Sucoth Benoth (ex-Infernal) whoÆd been in the band ::
:: Camos in the interim. From my point of view the best thing to ::
:: come from the semi-reformation of the band was some ::
:: interviews/documentation thatÆd arrived with their 2014 album ::
:: and while all of this provenance, history and a just-alright ::
:: set of albums released since 2010 made good on some of their ::
:: earlier promise Amen Corner had neither recreated the magick of ::
:: the old stuff or outdone it in a profound way, they did however ::
:: respect the old ways. The way forward beyond the 2010Æs has ::
:: been a focus on a higher standard while still meeting the ::
:: expectations of their long-standing name in Brazilian æold ::
:: schoolÆ black metal, an even more nostalgic LP (æUnder the Whip ::
:: and Crownæ, 2018) seemed to be the right direction with the ::
:: production values amped and the vocals slightly more over the ::
:: top than usual and thatÆd largely set the expectations ::
:: moderately high for æWritten by the Devilæ. ::
:: ::
:: If we set aside the precedent for Amen Corneræs personae and ::
:: auld sound for a moment and view this album in a vacuum ::
:: alongside their previous LP their style on æWritten by the ::
:: Devilæ could easily be categorized along the lines of recent ::
:: work from Mortuary Drape wherein an element of slower-paced but ::
:: still thrashing movement and 80Æs heavy metal inspired ::
:: songcraft inform their path. As we step into opener ôThe War of ::
:: the Antichristö and hit the nauseous wander of its opening riff ::
:: there is a clear sense of æselfÆ past-and-present available to ::
:: this moment but it isnÆt long before the actual strike into ::
:: song carries us to Celtic Frost-esque groove, rolling steady ::
:: and rattling off noisome leads atop the rest. Simple as its ::
:: arrangement is this song does what any great opener should, ::
:: tempers the ear for what is to come and rouses the spirits into ::
:: momentum, and in the process theyÆve introduced a strong and ::
:: pronounced bass guitar tone from Fernando, the newest addition ::
:: to their fold. His work is even more prominent in standout ::
:: jog-paced haunt ôThe Protectorsö, there youÆll likely get the ::
:: first wave black feeling more distinctly in terms of movement ::
:: and presentation. This is well enough in line with what the ::
:: bandÆd been working on with æUnder the Whip and Crownæ and thus ::
:: far we are getting something slightly more straight forward, ::
:: fewer riffs and more time spent developing their central ::
:: groove. ::
:: ::
:: The main reason IÆd taken a closer look at this record was not ::
:: only the strong pair of opening pieces and their conjoined ::
:: momentum but how theyÆd carried that mood and motif into the ::
:: extended standout ôFall and Ascensionô, probably the most ::
:: doomed piece on the album per its introduction and the first we ::
:: hear of pitch-shifted vocals finding their way into the ::
:: narrative style of the vocalist on this record. The build-up of ::
:: this song is perpetual, lingering as if about to break through ::
:: Ætil the very last moment (~5:58 minutes in) when it finally ::
:: does just enough to finish the thought. This modulation of ::
:: tempo over a span of time is brilliant in its effect and is ::
:: something fans of early Samael should appreciate up front. Side ::
:: A feels entirely relevant one moment to the next, sewn together ::
:: in mode and narrative enough that the first half of æWritten by ::
:: the Devilæ that it feels substantial, or, the nature of the ::
:: bandÆs approach is justified in effect and the directive of the ::
:: album is not only clear but somewhat tuneful. Per my own ::
:: listening experience I have to admit I wasnÆt all that excited ::
:: to jump into a new Amen Corner record to start, not expecting ::
:: much, yet that first half was entirely convincing in terms of ::
:: an authentic sound, an occult purpose, and a performative ::
:: stroke which is pure heavy metal when all is said and done. ::
:: ::
:: The only real challenge hereÆd been keeping the momentum going ::
:: throughout Side B as ôInfernoö grinds in before ôWritten by the ::
:: Devilö vamps and stalls its way through one of the more ::
:: theatric moments on the album, once again playing with pace in ::
:: a manner which is inherently entertaining and finding ::
:: profundity in exaggerative performances. Around this point it ::
:: feels like theyÆve nailed that ill-advised spirit of early 90Æs ::
:: non-Scandinavian black metal, not exactly putting on an early ::
:: Root level of weirding but not standing all that far from the ::
:: fire either way. The full listen kind of dies at the point, ::
:: unfortunately, as ôThe Splendour of Your Presenceö isnÆt much ::
:: of a thrill as a closer beyond compounding the Venom-esque ride ::
:: Amen Corner have always deployed and ôL·cifer, a Suprema Luz da ::
:: Manhπö is largely a four minute horror landscape with narration ::
:: in Portuguese (I assume), a dark sound collage which acts as a ::
:: 4+ minute outro. ::
:: ::
:: It isnÆt a perfect presentation yet there isnÆt much to ::
:: reasonably complain about when taking into consideration ::
:: expectations, history, and/or how this record builds upon the ::
:: previous work of Amen Corner and presents a viable nowadays ::
:: version of that without forgetting their deep underground ::
:: notoriety. Folks who know the bandÆs style and sound well ::
:: should be more than pleased with this personification though ::
:: newcomers might not immediately get the small, ultra-specific ::
:: niche thatÆd birthed Æem. It doesnÆt necessarily sit as ::
:: pristine in mind as, say, the obscure blasphemic freakery of ::
:: æThe Final Celebrationæ did back in the day when I first ::
:: discovered the band but I think these folks have done well to ::
:: replicate that core inspiration and take it forward a few ::
:: decades without losing its infernal fire and selling out to bad ::
:: nostalgia. ::
:: ::
:: . _ _ . ::
\: :. \\ ___________ . ___________ // .: :/
__\____ :: ____ ___\ _ / BERC : 2024 \ _ /___ ____ :: ____/__
\\\f3! :: \\\ __ _/_________i_________\ /___/ /// :: cRO///
\ :: :\-\___________\_ ___ / _ _/___________/-/: :: /
:: | . . _ _ _/ __/ . \_ _ _ . . | ::
: :::::::: | | \\\\\/ _______\____|\ \///// | | :::::::: :
:: | | -\-\/____/-------------\____\/-/- | | ::
:: | | \ :|: / | | ::
: : | . ` ::: ' . | : :
. . | : ::: : | . .
| :::....:::....::: |
: ::::::::::::::::: :
. :::''``:::''``::: .
: ::: :
. ::: .
.:.
: