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/:: Artist :: Behemoth ::\
:: Album :: The Shit ov God ::
:: Year :: 2025 ::
:: __ _ _ __ ::
-:--\\-----------------------------------------------------------------//--:-
:: \ / ::
:: . Genre :: Black Metal Source :: CD . ::
:: Label :: Shinigami Records R.date :: 2025-06-10 ::
_::__ Cat.nr. :: NBSR463 S.date :: 2025-05-09 __::_
::// \\::
::/---------------------------------------------------------------------\::
:: ::
/: Encoder :: LAME 3.100 -V0 :\
..: Bitrate :: avg. 282kbps :..
. Quality :: 44.1 kHz/Joint Stereo .
. Size :: 80.36 MB .
. .
__ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __
.\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////.
+/ -\------- | | ----\ tracklist /---- | | -------/- \+
/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: 1. The Shadow Elite 4:39 ::
:: 2. Sowing Salt 3:07 ::
:: 3. The Shit ov God 5:36 ::
:: 4. Lvciferaeon 4:16 ::
:: 5. To Drown the Svn in Wine 3:29 ::
:: 6. Nomen Barbarvm 5:03 ::
:: 7. O Venvs, Come! 5:55 ::
:: 8. Avgvr (The Dread Vvltvre) 5:49 ::
:: ::
:: ::
:: ------- ::
.. >> 37:54 ..
__ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __
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+/ -\------- | | ----\ release notes /---- | | -------/- \+
/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: ::
:: Behemoth has long been an exemplar of innovation, not only ::
:: insofar as the Polish extreme metal scene is concerned, but in ::
:: the context of the stylistic development of the craft ::
:: worldwide. Originally cutting their teeth in the obscure realm ::
:: of 2nd wave black metal as far back as 1991 outside of its ::
:: Nordic stronghold, this Pomeranian born power trio would send ::
:: shockwaves across Europe and beyond by being among the first to ::
:: successfully marry the haunting, atmospheric aesthetic of the ::
:: aforementioned style with the impact-based brutality of its ::
:: death metal predecessor. The road since has generally been a ::
:: straight line of further development and refinement of the once ::
:: novel death/black metal hybrid, barring a few legal ::
:: controversies and front man Nergal overcoming leukemia in 2010. ::
:: With the same principle lineup since 2004 smash LP Demigod in ::
:: tow, this fold stood primed to deliver numerous successive ::
:: storms of auditory fury, of which 2025Æs Shit Ov God is the ::
:: latest. ::
:: ::
:: The tight rope of remaining faithful to the bleak and ::
:: forbidding character of sound that typified BehemothÆs low-fi ::
:: early days while embracing the pomp and bluster of modern ::
:: quasi-symphonic death metal successfully walked at every point ::
:: of this 38 minute blast of rage. The most dynamic character ::
:: remains Nergal, whose deep and menacing barks and episodic ::
:: shrieks somehow remain wholly intelligible, all the while the ::
:: mixture of blurring tremolo riffs and bludgeoning grooves from ::
:: his guitar charts an elusive middle ground between Deicide and ::
:: Immortal. Naturally this is far from a one man show, as the ::
:: insane drumming display out of Inferno at the kit and the ::
:: steady rumbling quake of OrionÆs bass work gives each song ::
:: their full armored bodies, to speak nothing for the keyboard ::
:: and sample contributions of each to give said plate-mail its ::
:: elaborate insignias and ornamentation. Likewise, longtime ::
:: session lead guitarist and de facto 4th member Seth throws in a ::
:: few truly spellbinding shred segments to further enhance this ::
:: albumÆs occasional tech death tendencies. ::
:: ::
:: Brevity has generally been a reliable ally in BehemothÆs ::
:: ongoing career, and Shit Ov God exemplifies this fact in a ::
:: manner not seen since their transitional period in the late ::
:: 1990s. The stage is set with a concise explosion of riffs and ::
:: blasting drums in ôThe Shadow Eliteö, which manages to hit each ::
:: point in this foldÆs stylistic arsenal from the creepy ambient ::
:: introduction to the varying extremes of blackened coldness and ::
:: death-like putridity while barely breaking the 4-minute mark ::
:: and even throwing in an ear worm chorus refrain to boot. ::
:: Subsequent rollercoaster rides through high speed mayhem with ::
:: jarring shifts in feel like ôSowing Saltö and ôTo Drown The Svn ::
:: In Wineö hit with even greater impact in even less time, all ::
:: the while NergalÆs riff work remains uncannily busy and ::
:: unrelenting. The only slightly longer ôLvciferaeonö somehow ::
:: manages to outdo every previously noted banger in terms of ::
:: impactful moments, not the least of which being a captivating ::
:: solo out of Seth in the midst of a blur of sonic chaos. ::
:: ::
:: Though no chapter in this blackened sonic codex goes ::
:: extraordinarily long, there tends to be a greater variety of ::
:: contrasting moments to be found on those that go a little past ::
:: 5 minutes in length. Arguably the most blatant example of ::
:: BehemothÆs tendency to stir the stylistic pot a bit is the ::
:: fist-pumping title anthem, which has all the bells and whistles ::
:: of a typical death/black composition, yet somehow packages it ::
:: into something almost akin to a catchy, groove-based take on ::
:: the style that could be analogous to what AbbathÆs side project ::
:: I did for black metal almost 20 years ago. ôNomen Barbarvmö and ::
:: ôO, Venvs Come!ö both lean especially hard into the rich ::
:: symphonic yet frosty black metal aesthetic, yet prove even more ::
:: complex than previously noted songs, underscored by the two ::
:: most technically charged solos out of SethÆs arsenal this time ::
:: around. Things close off on the most aggressive and mayhem ::
:: driven fit of blackness of them all with ôAvgvr (The Dread ::
:: Vvltvre)ö, chock full of unrelenting blast beats and tremolo ::
:: riffs, yet also managing to book end this auditory novella with ::
:: a haunting acoustic guitar outro. ::
:: ::
:: As a total package, Shit Ov God offers up all the usual feats ::
:: of extreme metal that fans have come to expect since the ::
:: mid-2000s. The only real Persian Flaw in this offering is a ::
:: lack of artfulness to the lyrics that come along for the ride ::
:: when contrasted with the contributions of Polish poet Krzysztof ::
:: Azarewicz to BehemothÆs repertoire from the late 90s through ::
:: 2014Æs The Satanist, or even the subtle eloquence of the ::
:: material that immediately preceded it. The message comes with a ::
:: certain bluntness that doesnÆt necessarily fight against the ::
:: elaborate character of the music carrying it, but seems a tad ::
:: static and repetitive in light of it. Then again, such an ::
:: approach does lend itself to greater audience participation, ::
:: which seems to be a big part of why these feel immediately ::
:: familiar. But one thing that Behemoth canÆt be accused of is ::
:: slowing down with age, and with nearly 35 years now at their ::
:: backs, the immediate future looks like nothing but smooth ::
:: sailing to new uncharted realms of darkness. ::
:: ::
:: . _ _ . ::
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