BALROG - Bestial Satanic Terror

BALROG
Bestial Satanic Terror
Holy Records
8/10




Frenchman Sébastien Tuvi of Aborted maintains an alternate identity as Balrog and on Bestial Satanic Terror, he makes a distinct impression with eleven cuts (including intro and outro) of grim black metal recorded with classic, mid-range production. Hammering blasts, growling, frog-throated vocals and blisteringly flurries of staccato guitar picking are each typical of the sound of Balrog, each aspect delivered with a remarkably hateful presence.

At many times, this record bears the vibe of early Immortal and at times even goes so far as to sound like the primitive recordings of Behemoth. One thing that's really appealing about Tuvi's vocal approach is his addition of deep sounding, intensely guttural vocals. Even though there's a ton of reverb on them, they sound truly wicked, with "Horef Shahor" being an excellent example of this technique.
As Tuvi issues a sickly evil laugh at the onset of "Give War A Chance," it becomes apparent that his stance on composing this sort of material bears no compromise. The supreme chaos which ensues recalls the most frostbitten sounds of the Norweigian masters, while Tuvi adds plenty of twists in the riffing that make his writing stand out from many others that approach this style.

Bestial Satanic Terror is definitely not recommended by fans of candy store Black Metal. This music is for those that subscribe to the harshness displayed by the progenitors of the second wave of Black Metal and who are truly immersed in the occult philosophy. Essential listening for those who revel in raw, harsh sounds.

ERIN FOX © 2006 - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED