ALBUM REVIEW: The Heretics – Rotting Christ
While MAYHEM were burning churches and making headlines in Norway, in the south of the continent ROTTING CHRIST were spearheading a very different wave of black metal in Greece. Formed in 1987 by brothers Sakis and Themis Tolis, ROTTING CHRIST are unquestionably the leaders in the vanguard of Hellenic black metal with a career spanning over three decades, 13 full-length albums and countless miscellaneous releases. Still lead by the Tolis brothers, the band are back in 2019 with The Heretics, continuing their decade-long relationship with Season Of Mist.
As is the case with the majority of bands, ROTTING CHRIST have undergone a considerable evolution since their formative years. As such, their thirteenth offering is far, far removed from the grinding, second-wave black metal ferocity of their 1993 debut, Thy Mighty Contract. Rather, what the Athenian legends deliver with The Heretics is an end product far might intelligent, thought-provoking and artistic. Channelling a similar atmosphere and style to the preceding 2016 offering Rituals, the Tolis brothers expand on their previous effort considerably, with The Heretics surpassing Rituals in almost every way.
Anti-religious sentiment and black metal have a relationship that has become something of an inside joke in recent years. 20 or 30 years ago, blasphemy was shocking, to a degree. These days? Not so much. But while the Tolis brothers have never been shy about voicing their aversion to religion, the band is called ROTTING CHRIST, for goodness sake, The Heretics sees the signature black metal take on religion go down a more thoughtful path. Rather than childish blaspheming and proclamations of worship to our favourite, Hellish, bipedal goat, ROTTING CHRIST delve into philosophy and works from classic writers.
Heaven & Hell & Fire channels Milton‘s Paradise Lost, with quotes from the epic poem interspersed throughout the blackened, Hellenic aggression, IRON MAIDEN-esque melodies and an utterly jaw-dropping solo, while I Believe is a dark, atmospheric ode to Nikos Kazantzakis, a 20th century Greek writer whose travels led him to challenging the Greek Orthodox Church and the fundamental elements of Christian beliefs. Fire, God & Fear continues this trend, opening with a quote from 18th century French Enlightenment philosopher Voltaire; “Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” The song feels reminiscent of SATYRICON in its vocal patterns, percussive elements and style of tremolo riffing, while the Orthodox, Gregorian chanting gives the song an epic scale and the blinding solo in the latter half showcases some of the best guitar work in the entirety of The Heretics.
This thoughtful, intelligent style of heretical lyricism isn’t all consuming across The Heretics, however. Moving away from Christianity altogether, ROTTING CHRIST channel the power of mother nature and Slavic paganism with Ветры злые – or Vetry Zlye, for those of us who can’t read the Russian Cryillic alphabet. Though their Hellenic fury is present in abundance, Ветры злые proves to be one of the most melodic moments on The Heretics, ROTTING CHRIST with soaring leads and the beautiful voice of Irina Zybina elevating the song past it’s aggressive black metal baseline. Closing track The Raven also offers a break from philosophical anti-theism, standing as a masterful retelling of Edgar Allan Poe’s iconic poem of the same name. With spoken word passages of Poe’s original poem breaking up the snarling vocals of the elder Tolis, a crushing groove and beautiful melodies interlaced throughout the song, The Raven proves to be one of The Heretics‘ clear highlights.
With a band that has undergone as much stylistic evolution as ROTTING CHRIST, ranking their discography proves to be a Herculean task. As such, where a new album lands on your personal scale depends entirely on what era of the band you prefer. Do you disavow anything after the black metal ferocity of Thy Mighty Contract and Non Serviam? Or is the band’s gothic mid-career phase more your pace? In either case, The Heretics may miss the mark for you. But if you are interested in incredibly well-thought out, artistic and forward-thinking black metal, there is nothing to complain about with this record. The Heretics requires multiple listens and unbroken concentration to fully digest, but the reward is some of the finest material ROTTING CHRIST have put to tape in their career.
Rating: 9/10
The Heretics is set for release February 15th via Season Of Mist.
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