bartosso Enthralling

De Magia Veterum is just one of numerous projects spawned by the twisted éminence grise of experimental black metal, Mories. He must be a very busy man. As the mastermind of Gnaw Their Tongues, Aderlating, Cloak of Altering, Seirom and countless other projects, he became an incarnation of organized chaos, abyss explorer and prophet of misanthropy rolled into one. To our delight, he released IN CONSPECTU DIVINAE MAJESTATIS for free on his bandcamp page, where all of his countless projects are available under a single banner. Does it mean he doesn't hate people as much as it seems. Well, I doubt it.

Mories' deep fascination with noise and ambient is well noticeable in the EP(and all other DMV's albums, for that matter). Unlike Gnaw Their Tongues or Seirom, De Magia Veterum is first and foremost a black metal project. There's no place for brooding ambient intros or psychedelic interludes. Sound is oppressive, muddy and painfully coarse, abusing your ear drums with overpowering wall of distortion, frantic drums and rasping shrieks - doing it from the very beginning. The sound is surprisingly sharp and selective, though, which is another proof of Mories' unparalleled talent for sound production.

Compared to MIGDAL BAVEL(previous release from De Magia Veterum), more emphasis was put on structured chaos and extended passages of dissonant riffs. MIGDAL BAVEL seems to be more straightforwardly atmospheric and monolithic yet also more unrelenting, both composition and sound-wise. Consequently, IN CONSPECTU DIVINAE MAJESTATIS reminds me a bit of Deathspell Omega, although this one is even more daring, demanding and experimental. Furthermore, the ambiance created by Mories is more diverse, therefore being harder to define.

What would all that be without a human element, though? Now, that's the point. Mories managed to put so much emotion into that record, so much passion boils within this outburst of chaos, that I'm absolutely sure no one could do it better. Do not hesitate, download it while it's still available.

UMUR "In Conspectu Divinae Majestatis" is an EP release by Dutch experimental black metal act De Magia Veterum. The 4 track, 14:36 minute long EP was given free for download by the artist in September 2010. The material on the EP was originally recorded for a split release, but that project never materialized. De Magia Veterum is one of dutch one-man army, musician/ producer Mories projects. Besides De Magia Veterum, two of his most prominent projects are the noise act Aderlating and the experimental black/ noise/ drone act Gnaw Their Tongues. Mories output in the last 10 years have been significant, but he almost always delivers quality material.

The music on "In Conspectu Divinae Majestatis" is generally fast-paced blasting black metal with some really venemous, hatefilled and downright caustic raspy vocals in front. Well the vocals are actually mixed pretty low, so in front might be the wrong description here. The soundscape is layered, chaotic and dissonant. Not unlike the structured chaos of acts like Deathspell Omega and Blut Aus Nord. De Magia Veterum is ultimately a different beast with a unique sound though and the 4 tracks on this EP fully demonstrate that. Even though the tracks are only about 3 to 4 minutes long, there are several sections in each track. The tracks are layered and full of details, which make them not only a really aggressive and chaotic listen, but also a very intriguing one. I´m absolutely breathtaken by the sheer compositional genious of Mories. Even in the midst of raw and noisy chaos he is able to incorporate atmospheric moments of stunning beauty and melancholy like in some of the sections in "Empire of Emptiness".

As on all Mories releases from any of his projects, the production plays a key role. Almost like an extra instrument. Mories is not only an excellent composer and musician, but his skills as a producer are also on a very high level.

I find it incredible that someone would offer up such a high quality release for free and I can highly recommend that people who are interested in the more chaotic experimental side of black metal check out "In Conspectu Divinae Majestatis". A 4 - 4.5 star rating is deserved. What a sweet deranged treat.