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/:: Artist :: Power from Hell ::\
:: Album :: Profound Evil Presence ::
:: Year :: 2019 ::
:: __ _ _ __ ::
-:--\\-----------------------------------------------------------------//--:-
:: \ / ::
:: . Genre :: Black Metal Source :: CD . ::
:: Label :: Soul Erazer Records R.date :: 2024-10-08 ::
_::__ Cat.nr. :: SE045 S.date :: 2019-07-01 __::_
::// \\::
::/---------------------------------------------------------------------\::
:: ::
/: Encoder :: LAME 3.100 -V0 :\
..: Bitrate :: avg. 260kbps :..
. Quality :: 44.1 kHz/Joint Stereo .
. Size :: 85.52 MB .
. .
__ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __
.\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////.
+/ -\------- | | ----\ tracklist /---- | | -------/- \+
/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: 1. Nightmare 2:04 ::
:: 2. When Night Falls 3:53 ::
:: 3. False Puritan Philosophies 4:06 ::
:: 4. Lust... Sacrilege & Blood 4:50 ::
:: 5. Nocturnal Desire 2:22 ::
:: 6. Unholy Dimension 3:59 ::
:: 7. Lucy's Curse 4:15 ::
:: 8. Diabolical Witchcraft 5:26 ::
:: 9. Into the Sabbath 3:43 ::
:: 10. Elizabeth Needs Blood 5:03 ::
:: 11. Demons of the Night 3:37 ::
:: ::
:: ::
:: ------- ::
.. >> 43:18 ..
__ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __
.\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////.
+/ -\------- | | ----\ release notes /---- | | -------/- \+
/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: ::
:: With the thousand nail-pocked vambraces of 1985-era Satanic ::
:: speed metal and a rabid celebration of sexual bondage in hand ::
:: the perverse passersby and known imbibers of Brazilian first ::
:: wave black metalpunk band Power From Hell and their goat-jacked ::
:: rip of Bathory and early Sodom influenced sound took their name ::
:: from Onslaughtæs infamous debut with a mind for serious ::
:: dedication. Born from the streets of northeastern Sπo Paulo ::
:: their traditional black metal sound first became a reality in ::
:: the hands of cult leader Sodomic (Arπo da Silva Pinto) as he ::
:: branched off from brutal death metal band Anarkhon around 2001. ::
:: No aspect of Power From Hell would change drastically between ::
:: æThe True MetalÆ (2004) and æLust and ViolenceÆ (2011) in the ::
:: sense that Sodomicæs vision was unperturbed by outside ::
:: influences or collaborations, it was raw and lo-fi satanic ::
:: speed metal of great purity. Friendship and collaboration with ::
:: Whipstriker would conjure an even more serious live presence ::
:: soon after and by 2014 itÆd seem that Power From Hell would ::
:: assimilate most of Anarkhonæs line-up and become their major ::
:: focus going forward. Nothing about æDevilÆs WhorehouseÆ (2015) ::
:: felt restless or off the mark, if anything it was some of ::
:: Sodomicæs best work in the puritanical black/speed metal niche, ::
:: yet all signs began to point towards greater change from that ::
:: high point. Here with an established name and a freshly ::
:: modernized style there is bound to be some measure of ::
:: disconnect between this sixth full-length and the five prior. ::
:: æProfound Evil PresenceÆ is a mid-to-late 80Æs black metal ::
:: album at itÆs heart but it manifests today as a cephalopod, a ::
:: beast of brain and foot without a body thatÆd shirk the 90Æs ::
:: and 2000Æs to pick up those 80Æs black metal structures and ::
:: feed them the cthonic shadow-puppeted mythos of today. ::
:: æProfound Evil PresenceÆ is less a bridge between worlds as it ::
:: is a hybrid monstrosity intent on retaking the poisoned depths ::
:: of todayÆs black metallic oceans and repopulating them with ::
:: old, dead black metal genetics. ::
:: ::
:: My mind initially struggled with the idea that first wave black ::
:: metal ethos could ever meaningfully connect with Power From ::
:: Hellæs cited influences such as Mgla, Ascension and Cult of ::
:: Fire yet, they have found a way to use modern (æepicÆ) black ::
:: metal guitar techniques to shape a dark and slithering form of ::
:: unquestionable black metal. Whereas a comparably favorable ::
:: group like Funereal Presence takes a nigh progressive approach ::
:: to expanding black/speed metal forms into epics æProfound Evil ::
:: PresenceÆ finds Power From Hell flourishing with dissonance and ::
:: subtle melody while still pushing for 3-5 minute speed metal ::
:: song structures. The result is closer to Spiteæs æAntimoshiachÆ ::
:: albeit a shade warmer with Arckanum-esque proud melodicism ::
:: providing an energetic, majestic spirit without losing the ::
:: jogging speed metal pace. At no point should an old fan of this ::
:: band begin to shrug and walk away, though, as I would guess ::
:: only the most dedicated metalpunk would take small issue with ::
:: this very big change of Power From Hellæs sound. It is a big ::
:: change in terms of guitar work but, the core of Sodomicæs ::
:: writing and performances still roots in the first wave ::
:: regardless of how wildly he bends occult black metal darkness ::
:: around it youÆre still getting reverb-hollowed vocals, simpler ::
:: drum patterns, and an experience powered by the riff. ::
:: ::
:: Press play on any one part of æProfound Evil PresenceÆ and sit ::
:: through 2-3 full spins of its 42+ minute length. ItÆll be easy ::
:: to do so because the album flows together as one big mid-paced ::
:: stream with few standout moments. This is the only issue I see ::
:: with Power From Hellæs sixth album, that it is essentially a ::
:: debut within context of this new style and it may take 2-3 ::
:: albums to get ærightÆ just as it did with their original sound. ::
:: With that said it is still a fantastic album thatÆll likely ::
:: grab many ears by surprise that mightÆve felt like their ::
:: previous discography was predictable or plain. There was such ::
:: conviction building in the prior two Power From Hell releases ::
:: that to my ears æProfound Evil PresenceÆ feels like a bizarre ::
:: release, in the literal sense, a dam thatÆd been blocked that ::
:: now overflows with ambition held steadfast by worship of the ::
:: old ways. Reverb and echo feed the deeper need for obscure ::
:: classic black metal personality as Sodomicæs vocals direct the ::
:: experience with an imposing presence. The effect is something ::
:: ænew old schoolÆ in essence, closer to the triumphs of groups ::
:: like Invocation Spells, Witching Hour, and Nocturnal Witch as ::
:: each incorporates some level of modern black metal into their ::
:: staunchly olden-built music, but at a consistent mid-pace. It ::
:: is an album of details, mood and æthe momentÆ rather than a ::
:: rapacious and somewhat mindless spectacle thatÆd been expected. ::
:: ::
:: I found myself simultaneously entertained by those details and ::
:: unable to differentiate between the parts of the whole as I ::
:: listened to æProfound Evil PresenceÆ. Power From Hell lost some ::
:: of their reckless punk spirit in translation and this makes for ::
:: a æsameyÆ listening experience that grows in character over ::
:: time as its density allows details to stand out over time. For ::
:: those well indoctrinated with 80Æs heavy metal it will feel ::
:: appropriately æone noteÆ until variation is revealed in those ::
:: subtleties, for those enthralled by blackened heavy metal ::
:: variants itÆll be a damned slick gem with some unusual rhythmic ::
:: play and deep-black atmosphere. For my own taste it was an ::
:: experience of conflicting styles eventually melding into a ::
:: successful æin the momentÆ experience. Flitting between ::
:: Uada-esque atmospheric/melodic black metal riffs and blackened ::
:: speed metal on ôFalse Puritan Philosophiesö is the best example ::
:: of this, where theyÆre certainly a jack of several trades but ::
:: not yet memorable enough to hit the repeat button. Luckily the ::
:: record does flow together cleverly enough that these stylistic ::
:: juxtapositions create a unified character, a consistently ::
:: entertaining set of riffs that are both driving first wave ::
:: black/speed metal in spirit and hallucinating spectre of ::
:: oblivion in body. Giving shape to the shapeless and raining ::
:: shadowed tonality upon upbeat defiance is an excellent ::
:: undertaking in the hands of Power From Hell and IÆm hoping they ::
:: continue to iterate within this new sound long enough to find ::
:: those memorable moments that will transcend this already ::
:: satisfying blender of influences applied to pure black metal. ::
:: Highly recommended. For preview IÆd suggest starting with the ::
:: duo of ôFalse Puritan Propheciesö and ôLustàSacrilege & Bloodö ::
:: while paying close attention to how the songs connect in ::
:: succession, the transition between tracks is artful in every ::
:: case. Additionally, ôLucyÆs Curseö and ôInto the Sabbathö were ::
:: my personal favorite tracks. ::
:: ::
:: . _ _ . ::
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