SAMAEL

Black Metal / Industrial Metal / Symphonic Black Metal / Non-Metal • Switzerland

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Samael are a long-running Swiss black metal band formed in 1987 in Sion, Switzerland.

Although much of their music from the mid-1990s onwards has incorporated electronic sounds which would best define their genre as industrial metal, they are an early 2nd Wave black metal band and an innovator for post-black metal styles.

Their first demos presented a slow, doomy style of thrash metal with raw vocals, similar to that of Celtic Frost. Some of the songs would be included on Worship Him (1991) and Blood Ritual (1992).

Around the time of Ceremony of Opposites (1994), the band started using industrial-styled song techniques, employed by the use of keyboards and (minimalist) acoustic percussion. By this time, they had also left French record label Osmose Productions and signed with Century Media Records.

Their album Passage (1996) saw them gather a larger audience, with the music video for the song "Jupiterian Vibe" getting read more...

Thanks to Vehemency, progshine for the updates

SAMAEL - Luxferre online metal music video by SAMAEL

SAMAEL - Luxferre
Wilytank

Samael - Slavocracy online metal music video by SAMAEL

Samael - Slavocracy
Wilytank

SAMAEL - Infra Galaxia (OFFICIAL VIDEO) online metal music video by SAMAEL

SAMAEL - Infra Galaxia (OFFICIAL VIDEO)
Wilytank

SAMAEL - Jupiterian Vibe online metal music video by SAMAEL

SAMAEL - Jupiterian Vibe
Wilytank

SAMAEL - Baphomets Throne (OFFICIAL VIDEO) online metal music video by SAMAEL

SAMAEL - Baphomets Throne (OFFICIAL VIDEO)
Saturn

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SAMAEL Discography

SAMAEL albums / top albums

4.28 | 14 ratings

Worship Him
Black Metal 1991

4.39 | 20 ratings

Blood Ritual
Black Metal 1992

SAMAEL Ceremony of Opposites album cover

3.90 | 22 ratings

Ceremony of Opposites
Black Metal 1994

4.05 | 19 ratings

Passage
Symphonic Black Metal 1996

3.52 | 11 ratings

Eternal
Industrial Metal 1999

2.95 | 10 ratings

Reign of Light
Industrial Metal 2004

3.00 | 8 ratings

Era One
Non-Metal 2006

3.50 | 12 ratings

Solar Soul
Industrial Metal 2007

3.25 | 11 ratings

Above
Black Metal 2009

2.84 | 15 ratings

Lux Mundi
Industrial Metal 2011

4.50 | 4 ratings

Hegemony
Industrial Metal 2017

SAMAEL EPs & splits

5.00 | 1 ratings

Medieval Prophecy
Black Metal 1989

0.00 | 0 ratings

Triumph of Death
Black Metal 1992

5.00 | 1 ratings

After the Sepulture
Black Metal 1993

4.20 | 5 ratings

Rebellion
Symphonic Black Metal 1995

3.60 | 5 ratings

Exodus
Industrial Metal 1998

3.50 | 2 ratings

Antigod
Industrial Metal 2010

SAMAEL live albums

SAMAEL demos, promos, fans club and other releases (no bootlegs)

SAMAEL Into the Infernal Storm of Evil album cover

0.00 | 0 ratings

Into the Infernal Storm of Evil
Black Metal 1987

0.00 | 0 ratings

Macabre Operetta
Black Metal 1988

0.00 | 0 ratings

Recordings '88 - '89
Black Metal 1988

0.00 | 0 ratings

From Dark to Black
Black Metal 1989

SAMAEL re-issues & compilations

0.00 | 0 ratings

1987–1992
Black Metal 1994

SAMAEL Aeonics: An Anthology album cover

0.00 | 0 ratings

Aeonics: An Anthology
Black Metal 2007

0.00 | 0 ratings

A Decade in Hell
Black Metal 2010

SAMAEL singles (2)

0.00 | 0 ratings

Telepath
Industrial Metal 2004

0.00 | 0 ratings

On Earth
Industrial Metal 2005

SAMAEL movies (DVD, Blu-Ray or VHS)

3.00 | 1 ratings

Black Trip
Black Metal 2003

SAMAEL Reviews

SAMAEL Lux Mundi

Album · 2011 · Industrial Metal

Warthur

Samael briefly returned to their black metal roots - or, rather, a somewhat sterile but still reasonably entertaining approximation thereof - on the preceding Above, but on Lux Mundi they go right back to the extremely middle-of-the-road and derivative industrial metal with symphonic black metal sprinkles they've been trading in for a while. As with the extremely similar Reign of Light, they do a competent job technically speaking but seem to lack all passion, and musically they aren't really doing anything that isn't being done with far more flair by people who actually are able to display something resembling passion for this type of music.

more than 2 years ago
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Report #289834

SAMAEL Above

Album · 2009 · Black Metal

Warthur

If completely changing your band's sound - like Samael did when they went from being pioneers of the 1990s black metal boom to a slick, occult-tinged industrial metal outfit - is a brave, risky move, then reversing that shift is an even riskier proposal. This is what Samael attempt on Above, a sudden and surprising gear change back to black metal (with occasional bits of more traditional metal and industrial influences here and there to add a little spice). It certainly succeeds at temporarily refreshing their sound, though it feels rather bland and generic compared to the startlingly original doomy black metal of their early albums; the use of programmed drums in particular has aged poorly.

more than 2 years ago
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Report #289674

SAMAEL Reign of Light

Album · 2004 · Industrial Metal

Warthur

The good news about Reign of Light is that Samael take the opportunity to spice up their industrial metal sound, which was in danger of becoming bland on the preceding Eternal, with some world music influences. The bad news is that this isn't quite enough to cover up just how generic and boring the industrial metal side of their sound has become here. Five years and one shelved album (only released later as Era One) down the line from the previous release should really have yielded a more interesting musical evolution than this, particularly in a band which had previously shown such skill in changing and updating its sound.

more than 2 years ago
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Report #289645

SAMAEL Eternal

Album · 1999 · Industrial Metal

Warthur

Samael's Eternal marks the point where the ghosts of doom metal and black metal are exorcised from their sound forever, leaving only competent if somewhat generic industrial metal in their wake. It's perfectly listenable stuff, mind, but it feels like a shame that after three years the band produce something which is so much less ambitious than Passage, which wasn't content to be merely listenable. Still, if you like the industrial metal sound at all - particularly in its more danceable incarnations - you'll probably find something to like about Eternal, even if it isn't an album you come back to very regularly.

more than 2 years ago
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Report #289644

SAMAEL Passage

Album · 1996 · Symphonic Black Metal

Warthur

After the disappointing and tired-sounding Ceremony of Opposites, Samael utterly transformed their sound with this impressive release. At first I thought their new approach was a rather bland and generic industrial metal sound, but on closer listening I found more and more hidden depths; in effect, it's a blend of industrial metal with symphonic black metal (and specifically symphonic black metal of the sort which Arcturus would produce later in their career). It's an album with plenty of hidden depths and a modern sound which still feels ahead of its time to this day - there's blackened symphonic industrial outfits working today who don't come close to this one.