ALBUM REVIEW: Lupus Dei (15th Anniversary Edition) – Powerwolf
In many ways, it feels like POWERWOLF’s meteoric rise has almost come out of nowhere. While obviously becoming Wacken headliners in their native homeland is itself a big deal, for a power metal band to be headlining London’s Roundhouse venue also feels pretty unheard of. But to treat POWERWOLF’s modern day stature as sudden is to downplay that the band have been passionately slogging away for the last 20 years. Their third album, Bible Of The Beast is often touted as a watershed moment for the band; landing on that mix of knowing winks, big riffs and even bigger choirs all in perfect balance provided a breakout record for the band. But POWERWOLF’s earlier material is no slouch either. Clearly, the band agree, seeing fit to dust off their sophomore album and give Lupus Dei an airing for their modern fans.
Taken as a whole, Lupus Dei has many of the hallmarks that define modern POWERWOLF. The necro-romantic imagery, the quasi-religious incantations and choirs, the dense guitars and Attila Dorn’s commanding Satanic preacher baritone are all present – hell, they all appear within the first track proper, We Take It From The Living. Follow-up Prayer In The Dark follows a similar path, its dogmatic role-playing fronting electrifying, searing guitar leads in a fashion that only POWERWOLF can get away with. But it doesn’t take long into the album to realise why Lupus Dei isn’t typically mentioned with the same reverence as some of its successors. While numbers like Behind The Leathermask sport fun, chunky riffs and squealing harmonics and In Blood We Trust boasts epic staccato chants and punchy guitars, both tracks feel like diamonds in the rough – just a few more cuts away from becoming truly special.
There are big, shining moments of that POWERWOLF black magic smattered across Lupus Dei, of course. Saturday Satan strikes a perfect balance between big hooks and heavy metal church dramatics, all while sporting a wry smile amidst its metallic fury. Similarly, Vampires Don’t Die is a fast-paced ode to gothic folklore, with stabbing riffs and crowd chant vocals keeping things lively. However, it’s When The Moon Shines that feels most like POWERWOLF finding their voice. It’s a demonic summoning of a power ballad, where Dorn’s powerful voice guides the listener from Latin chanting to ballad belting – all while the gates of hell seemingly open in the background, bleeding into crowd choruses and SABBATH-tinged riffs. It’s ultimately a precursor of something that POWERWOLF would go on to master more wholly on the next album, but it’s notable how fully formed that sensibility already is here.
With the original album being a strong release all of its own, it’s worth noting that this is a reissue through and through. Any semblance of remixing or remastering is extremely minor, if at all present. However, for long-time fans, this 15th anniversary edition comes with six demos from the vault. These are all earlier incarnations of cuts that appear on the album, each mostly faithful to the final renditions minus the thick sonic embellishments that make Lupus Dei sound huge. They’re an interesting insight into the band’s process, but ultimately nothing more than a curio and certainly not worth the price of admission for anyone who already owns the original record.
Lupus Dei is clearly a significant moment in the POWERWOLF chronology. It’s the sound of a band having found their own distinctive identity and working hard to refine it in to the beast it would later become. While it may not be quite as admired as some of their other releases, Lupus Dei is still an essential listen for any fans of the band it may have passed by first time.
Rating: 7/10
Lupus Dei (15th Anniversary Edition) is set for release on November 11th via Metal Blade Records.
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