SEMARGL (Ukraine) - "ORDO BELLICTUM SATANAS" Review

SEMARGL (Ukraine) - "ORDO BELLICTUM SATANAS"
Full-length, Twilight-Vertrieb, March 12th, 2010

Released March 12th, 2010... This is the fourth full-length album from SEMARGL and it reaches beyond any existing current styles of heavy music, presenting the listener with a creative meld of aggressive Satanic Black Metal, Death Metal vocal counterpoints, elements of old-school Thrash and Black'n'Roll dynamism combined with a totally unexpected new approach to the bands original sonic assault including some Electronic elements and various female vocals of varying styles!

First of all, let me start this Review by saying this is one of the hardest albums I've ever had to review, not because I like it or don't like it or can't describe it accurately... but rather because it is so diverse that it leaves your jaw hanging on the ground, after multiple listens I still didn't know how to approach reviewing this album. I've sat on this album for a whole month now and still couldn't come up with an acute approach to capture it accurately! It really is an album that has to be heard rather than dissected and analyzed to death!

There are some quite distinct influences directly linked to the creative input of the various guests on the record including Jonny Maudling (BAL-SAGOTH , MY DYING BRIDE), Nera (DARZAMAT), Iscariah (IMMORTAL, DEAD TO THIS WORLD, NECROPHAGIA), Novy (DIES IRAE, BEHEMOTH, VADER), Vrangsinn (CARPATHIAN FOREST, NATTEFROST, PHOBIA) and if I remember correctly, Ashemidi (MELECHESH).

The album contains 12 separate tracks, built around the bands common ideological Satanic manifesto, written and Recorded in Kiev at Blacklight Recording Studio. Includes a terrific 16 page booklet with marvelous artwork and photography!

It's going to very interesting to see how audiences take to this record; in one sense the record is so overtly creative that it will undoubtedly win over new fans and that same creativity and diversity is also sure to drive away many Extreme Metal purists. In order to fully grasp the direction SEMARGL have chosen to take their sound, we need to follow their slow burning evolution from their diabolical Debut album, "ATTACK ON GOD" which while a symphonic BM album was quite an extreme album in it's own right! The bands 2nd album, "SATANOGENISIS" saw SEMARGL progress into a more modern SATYRICON type direction as well as dabbling in dark electronic sonics, further explored on their 3rd full-length album, "MANIFEST"... when following their evolution it's easier to see how they arrived at this point!

The first 2 songs the band played live, from the new album, prior to it's release displayed a much more direct driving Thrash influence in both the drumming and riff style... some will hear an early METALLICA Thrash riff influence in the aggressive, punchiness of some of the new tracks. The band decided not to make the entire album follow that path and added female vocals on several tracks as well as Industrial Electronica to certain trax that will remind some of a mix between RAMMSTEIN and PRODIGY, and are quite surprising to say the least! Nera from DARZAMAT appears on the track "Credo Flaming Rain" and the song begins with a beat and sound reminiscent of Trip-Hop in the vein of PORTISHEAD and proceeds with a steady clean female vocal line for the duration of the track! Whereas on other trax like "Credo Possess", female vox are used as a backing enhancement or additional element to the male gravel throat-ed Death Metal style vox by Rutarp while a Thrashy straightforward chugging riff plays over a steady Thrash beat.

The most surprising trax for me are those like "Credo Vrangsinn" which is entirely Electronica and is extremely short at only 2mins of playing time, produced and procured by the CARPATHIAN FOREST Bassist, Vrangsinn himself... this was quite a shock in some ways and will definitely have some listeners completely confused or in a total conundrum!

Another really different sounding track is "Credo Revolution" with it's high pitched backing female vocal and Electronica elements immediately reminding me of my favorite PRODIGY track, "Break & Enter", both the album version and the 2005 Live Edit Remix come to mind so I think fans of ABORYM on their "WITH NO HUMAN INTERVENTION" album might really enjoy some of the elements present on this album!

If you forget about constrictions or personal opinions regarding "how something is supposed to sound" in Extreme Metal, you will discover a heavily diversified sound teaming with a multitude of oblique ideas running in every direction yet still held together by a solid production and thematic manifesto... the key to the album is the Philosophy behind it... how to present Satanic Extreme Metal in a new and creatively inventive way that hasn't been done before by adding new elements to it and allowing those elements to stand proud in heir own right, regardless of any existing sound or on predilections or expectations listeners and fans might have! This is an album you have to listen to and go with the flow of the album, without comparing it to any other record you've heard, no matter what sonic elements are at play on any particular track!

The main thing about this album is, I think that due to it's direct approach (coupled with it's unique diversity and creativity), will translate to the live stage extremely well. The chugging Thrash riffs and drumming are sure to keep audiences headbanging, the Death Metal/Black Metal vocal combination maintains the extremity in the music, the experimentation and Electronic/Industrial elements will provide a unique background to the Metal and Black'n'Roll
at it's forefront and the female vocals will either irritate or seduce the listener into it's uniquely different atmosphere! One thing no-one can say about this album is that it isn't interesting, because EVERY song on this album is different and specific with it's own individual separating characteristics and identity! A new Era has dawned for the band in their sonic Evolution/Revolution and all I can say is I can't wait to see this band take this album out on the road and Tour the HELL out of it... THAT will win over new fans for the band and the album for sure! ONLY FOR THE OPEN MINDED, this album will either Rock your socks off with it's immediate head-bang-ability or drive you away in irritation, I don't think SEMARGL will mind either way!

That being said, my personal favouite trax are the ones that take on a more direct METAL approach such as; "Credo Sacrifice", "Credo Possess", "Credo Bellictum Satanas", "Credo Satania" and "Credo Dead To This World" from Iscariah with it's definite DEAD TO THIS WORLD style Black/Thrash attack! The album scores high on creativity from beginning to end!

Reviewed by Damien Bentley - 10/10