ALBUM REVIEW: Ad Numen Satanae – Xeper
Formed in Italy back in 2008, XEPER;s journey, both musically and geographically, has been long and storied. Honing their craft, and taking their cues from second wave Norwegian black metal, in Italy, the band eventually relocated to the land that spawned most of their influences, and have slowly but surely begun to establish a solid following within the Norwegian scene and further afield. Their latest album, Ad Numen Satanae, sees XEPER at perhaps their best, with a sharper production quality and wider range of influences making this album not only the bands best, but also one of the early stand out records of the year so far.
Fiat Interitus, a short but catchy track, has a solid, classic heavy metal influence, complete with haunting clean vocals and marching drumbeats, interlaced with dark, Black Metal flourishes, serving as a great way to ease the listener into the record. The Hidden Genesis, by contrast, sets a blistering pace, with tight guitars, intricate, precise drums and shrill howls creating a visceral, piercing sound with plenty of intensity, which is broken up somewhat later on by some measured, atmospheric parts that work extremely well. Under the Will of Satan takes the sort of mid-paced, brooding hooks of the previous song and builds upon them, bringing in chanted vocals and more reserved musicianship to the record, resulting in a magnificent slab of lean melodic black metal that is complemented perfectly by the leaner, polished production.
Riding the Spiral of Lilith incorporates murkier guitar tones for its intro, adding a hazy quality to the songs opening moments, before launching into the tracks more rhythmic, authoritative main motif. The muscular undercurrent of this particular offering is counterpointed by slick leads and an acidic vocal, both of which lend a generous dose of character to the track, peppering a little venom in amongst the denser sections of this song. It’s a lengthy and powerful piece of music with an imaginative second half that broadens the scope of the albums sound without straying too far outside of the realms of more traditional black metal.
Purity and Death steers the music back into far more familiar territories, with the fast and ferocious tempo and chunkier rhythm guitars establishing it as one of the more aggressive numbers on here. The caustic shrieks, frenetic drumming and varied guitars all contribute to this heavier feel, and it does a fantastic job of drawing the listener back into the record after the longer and more hypnotic affair that preceded it. Snake That Brought the Flame follows in much the same vein, albeit with more pronounced, melodic flourishes being one of this songs focal points. The leads duck and weave between the monstrous attack of the drums, bass and rhythms, adding a stark contrast within the tracks sound that works just as well as the preceding offering. Ad Numen Satanae;s closing title track again opts for the meatier, thrash-inflected guitars that marked the approach of the last two tracks, although the main, metal centric side of the songs sound only persists until half way through, when it abruptly gives way a subdued, ambient sound that carries this song, and the album to its conclusion. It’s a jarring change of pace that pays off, with the record closing on a moment that is just as dramatic as the ones that started it off.
Ad Numen Satanae is arguably XEPER‘s best and most ambitious output to date. There’s a very strong Norwegian black metal influence present here, but there’s definitely plenty of subtle, but effective, elements peppered liberally throughout the album, from the cleaner, chanted vocals to thrash and ambient parts, that help to make this album so appealing. And whereas many black metal acts have a tendency to lose some of their appeal with a more polished and tight production style, this band have been able to make their music sound, if anything, even more feral and vicious than it ever has. With Ad Numen Satanae boasting both the bands most accessible and heaviest work so far, this is ultimately an impressive take on a classic sound that could very well place XEPER at the forefront of the international black metal underground.
Rating: 8/10
Ad Numen Satanae is out now via Soulseller Records.
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