Warthur Just think - had Nergal not been successful in his battle with leukemia, this could well have been the very last Behemoth album. Luckily, as things stand it was just the herald of a brief hiatus for the band that come to a close with the release in 2014 of The Satanist - an album which I feel probably benefited from them taking a bit of downtime, the years of recovery not only allowing Nergal to heal but also allowing the entire band to recharge their creative batteries. It's not that this is a bad album so much as this is exactly what we've come to expect from 2000s-era Behemoth - solid, technical blackened death metal delivered without too many surprises. It certainly scratches the itch, but the same's true of several of the preceding albums and it doesn't do much to make itself stand out.

arcane-beautiful When it comes to extreme metal, Behemoth are the perfect example of how it should be done right.

Just very brutal, smart & not too complicated.

The one thing that draws me even more to Behemoth (aside from their amazing compositions and appearance...Nergal is one evil looking man, and in every picture, makes sure he's looking at YOU!) is that they actually care about what they write about. Their anti theist image and slightly Satanistic approach are very acceptable and their philosophy is interesting. Taking a wide range of lyrical influence, I always look forward to a Behemoth album for the linear notes, which give the meaning of the song more life & colour.

This album is no different, being extremely well produced, as always and just being epic as hell.

1. Daimonos - Just an epic start. Very technical and very powerful. Interesting lyrics. 10/10

2. Shemhamforash - Interesting topic for a song. Just as evil as Behemoth should be. 9/10

3. Ov Fire & The Void - Quite slow, but a mass of power. Great lyrics. 9/10

4. Transmigrating Beyond Realms Ov Amenti - Riff tastic. Great chorus and some knockout riffage. 9/10

5. He Who Breeds Pestilence - Odd changes, but incredibly frantic. 9/10

6. The Seed Ov I - Quite doomy. The drums is a constant force to be reckoned with though. 9/10

7. Alas, Lord Is Upon Me - Ah yes, the one with the video that got banned, for having very colourful stabs at the Catholic church, including Satanic imagery and a cardinal raping a woman. Great video though, haha. Epic song, quite short, but effective. 10/10

8. Defiling Morality Ov Black God - A wee bit filler. But better than most garbage. 8/10

9. Lucifer - Pure evil. Very doomy and disturbing. Great ending. 10/10

CONCLUSION: I wouldn't say its their best album, but it's still worth the listen. Although every Behemoth album is.

DeathOfSeasons The biggest disappointment of the year? Well no, that would go to "Deflorate" by The Black Dahlia Murder, but this album comes a very close second. After the mixed reception that "The Apostasy" received, I was told by Behemoth fans that is a return to form and one of the greatest albums they've recorded yet. That would be true if this album stopped after the track "Transmigrating Beyond Relams ov Amenti", but this album doesn't, and that's what seals this albums fate as just another average release.

Anyway, just like the last few Behemoth albums this is technical and brutal Blackened Death Metal. There's nothing new to be heard here, just solid Behemoth. The album kicks off with "Daimonos". Beginning with what sounds like an audio clip left off the latest Karl Sanders release, the actual song soon kicks in with some double bass drumming and guitar work very similar to that found on a Nile album. It's not long until you've reached the peak of the album, "Ov Fire and the Void". Starting off with some amazing drumming and guitar work that's firmly in synch with each other, the song quickly descends into one of the most epic tracks Behemoth have recorded. This is the type of song you'd play while your army is marching into battle.

However, after track four, "Transmigrating Beyond Realms ov Amenti", the album quickly becomes nothing but bland and faceless Blackened Death Metal. There's nothing all that bad about tracks such as "He Who Breeds Pestilence" or "Alas, Lord Is Upon Me", but there's nothing to really praise about them either. Tracks five through eight just sound like the first four tracks recycled and shuffled about. The huge dip in quality wouldn't be so noticeable if these tracks weren't lumped together. If they were mixed with the better opening tracks then the album would have flowed better as there'd be no massive dip in quality, but they aren't, which is one of the biggest problems with "Evangelion".

That being said, the album does go out on a very high note. The final track, "Lucifer", is an absolute monster of a song. Eerie, creepy, intense and epic are just a few of the words you could use to describe this track. Fusing doom elements with Behemoths trademark sound, this is the most unique track on the album.

Now even though this album contains some great riffing and outstanding drumming, one of the problems with it are the vocals. Nergal's vocals are decent, but he lacks any real range and his vocals can become very tiring. His voice is fairly unique, sounding like a roar instead of full on growling, but the tone of his voice barely changes throughout the whole album.

So it's a shame that I can only give this an album an average rating. It starts off great, but pacing problems and repetitive vocals really hurt "Evangelion". I strongly suggest you stick with Behemoths earlier albums.

Download: Ov Fire and the Void

For fans of: Akercocke, Nile

(Originally written for Rate Your Music)