The third full-length album by the Belgian Black Metal act Ars Veneficium is a filthy little beast. Seriously. It’s their heaviest, most inspired Black Metal release up to date.
‘The Lurking Shadow Of Death’ is an orgy of relentless blast beats/beating, tremolo picking/scrubbing to the maximum of the scale of abrasiveness and awash of bestial tormented vocals. The sound is still nicely downtuned but the revitalised production exceeds everything, it bursts with energy and oozes malevolence in all directions.
Opener ‘Death Is Light’ is a full frontal head-butt. ‘Eye to Eye with the Devil’ kicks you shamelessly in the marbles. ‘De glorie van dood’ with Enthroned’s Nornagest on guest vocals is simply perfect, perfect in all its rawness. ‘Into the Void’, ‘My Tomb Under the Stars’, with Anders from Necrophobic also on guest vocals, ‘Pale Image of I’, none of the album tracks give you a chance to catch your breath. It’s an ongoing tsunami of Black Metal frenzy. Yes, it’s one of those albums that drains all your energy, leaving behind you helpless and devoid. This album should come with a health warning, I say!
Bashing and pounding, yet creating a solid, catchy and mature third album.
Ars Veneficium really stepped up the ante on this one, eclipsing even the last effort of Sargeist. Such a vile, gritty album, in the unpurest Black Metal tradition!
I wished I had albums like this to review every day. It gets a MAXIMUM score in my book and those who didn’t purchase this album last year: shame on you, posers!
