ALBUM REVIEW: II: The Grand Procession – Begat The Nephilim
New Hampshire’s BEGAT THE NEPHILIM have drawn comparisons to the likes of THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER and FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE with their heavily melodic, metalcore-tinged take on death metal, but this is a massive oversimplification of an incredibly eclectic and broad sound. Incorporating the aforementioned elements, along with touches of symphonic black metal, post-rock and even a little dash of power metal, they’re one of those acts that are extremely hard to pigeonhole into a single genre. Their latest album, II: The Grand Procession, is a great example of this, showcasing not only the band’s stylistic depth but also a larger degree of confidence and focus than on their earlier output.
Panegyric is a brilliant opener that blends tight, melodic hooks with unerring intensity, with soaring guitars, intricate drums and ferocious vocals creating an aggressive yet incredibly catchy offering that incorporates a myriad of influences from black metal to metalcore. Pygmalionism takes a slower, more grandiose approach without stripping away the elements that made the first track so impressive. It’s a polished slab of imaginative death metal with plenty of jarring moments to keep the listener engrossed throughout. Paterfamilias is a track defined by fantastic musicianship, notably its guitars, which provide plenty of glorious, technical flourishes in amongst the more visceral sections, making an otherwise caustic piece of music far more accessible. Threnody: Death Of Spring, with its haunting piano motifs and minimalist, borderline post-rock guitar lines, is a brief interlude from the outright brutality that markedly shifts the record in a different direction, adding another beguiling dimension to the band’s eclectic musical range.
The Grand Procession serves as a huge affair, with focused rhythms and sharp discordance peppered throughout, which, along with the bellicose duelling vocals and blisteringly precise percussion, makes for an unrelentingly speed-driven but extremely layered sound that boasts bucket-loads of musicality and savagery in equal measure. Ossuary is the most cacophonous number thus far, with a prominent, sludgy bassline and muscular guitars crafting a monstrous sound. The reserved, ethereal passage in the middle of the song only exemplifies just how heavy the rest of the music is, and proves to be one of the more unpredictable and ultimately fierce tracks on this album. Exanguinated shifts towards an atmospheric feel, with heady keyboards adding an angelic edge to the dancing riffs, throaty roars and thunderous drumming. Much like earlier tracks on the album, this is tinged with a generous dose of power metal, whilst being careful to keep one foot firmly planted within extreme metal, resulting in a sound that is simultaneously frenetic and symphonic.
Dirge is anything but, providing another short instrumental break with a cleaner guitar sound which acts as an excellent segue into Paupers Grave. This one’s a magnificent offering that sees the band’s rabid side contrasting perfectly with their slicker, more melodic one. The juxtaposition between crushing breakdowns and virtuosic guitar playing is expertly done, never allowing one aspect to dominate the song and making it instantly memorable in the process. The Grand Procession Part ll is a dark, brooding slab of blackened metalcore, with chunky, chugging guitars interspersed with bursts of aggression and sublime moments, making this song more diverse in many respects than many of the preceding tracks. It’s incredibly vast, and has a broad musical scope which showcases much of what makes this band so great. Leucomalachite Green is a solid closing effort that, despite being quite short, packs a punch with its rhythms and captivates with its leads. It doesn’t possess the sort of immersive, climactic feel that the last track did, but it still has enough high quality hooks to keep it interesting.
Compared to the band’s debut, The Surreptitious Blasphemy/Mother of Blasphemy, two things are clear; firstly, BEGAT THE NEPHILIM‘s style has expanded to include a wide range of influences, with more than a few offerings on here having some subtle post-rock and power metal hooks, notably on the lead guitar and keyboards, creating a blend of light and dark within the band’s sound that makes it an even more compelling listen. Second, there seems to be a greater confidence in the songwriting that the first album – as impressive as it was – never really translated onto the record in the way it does here. This, along with the more polished production and the tighter musicianship, make this a marked step up for BEGAT THE NEPHILIM, placing them musically on par with many of the bands they have drawn favourable comparisons to.
Rating: 8/10
II: The Grand Procession is out now via Noble Demon Records.
Like BEGAT THE NEPHILIM on Facebook.