siLLy puPPy Arguably the most famous symphonic death metal band in the world these days, Greece’s SEPTICFLESH has been killing it since it reinvented itself in 2003 with the now classic “Sumerian Daemons” which the band has continued to base its unique brand of melodic death metal, traditional Greek folk music and classical orchestral works set to a unique mix of sensuality and bombast. The band has been silent for quite a few years having taken a whopping five to release anything since its 2017 “Codex Omega” but at long last these angsty guys from Athens have just dropped its 11th studio album MODERN PRIMITIVE onto the world and for true fans of this unorthodox stylistic approach won’t disappoint!

Nine new tracks that add up to just less then 39 minutes of playing time conspire to craft another raucous maelstrom of symphonic death metal that perhaps sounds closest to 2008’s “Communion” with short snappy tracks that focus on instantly gratifying metal hooks and the one two punch of the harmonic vocal attacks of bassist Seth Siro Anton’s clean vocal deliveries along with the guttural growls of guitarist / keyboardist Sotiris Anunnaki V. Anton. Add some tasty intros of Greek folk music which seeds the melodic underpinnings and the now classic orchestral elements which SEPTICFLESH continues to excel at and i have to say that MODERN PRIMITIVE is one of my faves from these Greeks since “The Great Mass” although the band has been extremely consistent in delivering the expected goods for quite some time now.

While not the only symphonic death metal band on the scene, SEPTICFLESH succeeds in continuously crafting instantly catchy tracks that allow the dualistic nature of the melodic with the extremely brutal to coexist in relative harmony. Like many of the band’s previous works, MODERN PRIMITIVE tackles the subject matter of ancient history which given the lengthy timespan of the world of Greece is an inexhaustible supply of inspiration for sure! This is classic SEPTICFLESH all the way with very little to make you think otherwise. If something completely new was on your wishlist i’m afraid that MODERN PRIMITIVE is not going to scratch that itch. This album features the tried and true fanbase tested formula which remains a fairly unique sounding one that is unlike any other. Even bands like Fleshgod Apocalypse sound nothing like SEPTICFLESH.

Given that this band has always had a bit of a propensity for pop hooks made intense with death metal clothing and turned sophisticated with orchestral sounds of classical music, it should be no surprise that SEPTICFLESH has continued down the road already tread in order to bring another properly baked tracks of similar style to the fanbase. In that regard i have to say that this one was instantly addicting with some albums being more instantly likable than others. This one features an immediacy the the previous works of “Titan” and “Codex Omega” lost a bit of with the more complex arrangements. This is certainly a band i never really tire of so any album of what these guys do best is more than enough to keep me satisfied. All the elements that made albums of yore so utterly irresistible are here in full abundance. Another score for one of symphonic death metal’s top dogs in the biz.

siLLy puPPy As the Greek economy continues to crumble into the eternal fires of Hades threatening to take down the entire European Union in its wake, a few signs of life still resonate from the fertile Hellenic soils amongst the olive stomping ceremonies and the esoteric speeches of Greek economist Yanis Varoufakis explaining in great detail how in vivid detail of how we’re all just plain fucked. There is no doubt that extreme metal bands were ahead of this umpteenth wave of eternal doom and pessimism on the nature of humanity’s utter stupidity and some such as Greek’s own SEPTICFLESH have constructed a soundtrack or two in its honor even in the most remote nooks and crannies of this here global village.

Although the list of symphonic death metal bands isn’t huge ( i think the list only includes Aeternam, Arch Of Hell, Atrocity, Brymir, Dark Lunacy, Dawn Of Tears, Depressed Mode, Dissonance In Majesty, Dominia, Empyrean, Eternal Tears Of Sorrow, Ex Duo, Fleshgod Apocalypse, Gorgon, Hollenthon, Inactive Messiah, Irreversible Mechanism, Kalisia, Karlahan, Mayan, Meadow’s End, Mechina, Odes Of Ecstasy, Ouroboros, Persefone, Red Descending, The Monolith Deathcult, SEPTICFLESH, Serenity In Murder, Shade Empire, Sidious, Skyfire, Waltari, Whispered, Whorlion, Wintersun, Vesania, Xerath ) because of the short time it has had to branch off of its parent death metal world, SEPTICFLESH was well ahead of this game in the field of having incorporated symphonic touches to their extreme metal passions all the way back on their second album “Έσοπτρον” in 1995.

Since then the band has dipped in and out of the symphonic atmospheric world of metal and opted for death doom or Gothic metal at times but starting with 2003’s “Sumerian Daemons,” the band latched onto a symphonic death metal sound all their own. Whereas some of the aforementioned bands like Fleshgod Apocalypse for example went for a brutal death metal approach with a philharmonic aggressiveness to back it up, SEPTICFLESH went for a more traditional death metal sound with an orchestra to primarily add atmospheric touches. Following three years after their tenacious symphonic taste of bombast “Titan,” the Greeksters conjure up another dose of high octane fueled death metal meets a full orchestra on their 10th studio album CODEX OMEGA which pretty much continues down the path of full return without much to add, however when the elements of impending doom lifted so gracefully by the Czech Republic’s FILMharmonic Orchestra Prague, gosh the apocalypse just doesn’t seem so bad!

SEPTICFLESH are masters of codifying the opposing forces of bombastic death metal and lush symphonic classical music into allies which united somehow bring a form of musical harmony to the universe. Stylistically CODEX EFFECT isn’t much different than the previous offering “Titan.” Both contain exquisitely hideous cover art, death metal bombast punctuated by the charismatic growls (and clean vocal declarations) of Spiros Antoniou and death metal riffing and percussive blastbeats that could conjure up ALLLL the mosh pitting demons of the world. They also contain the most sensual atmospheric symphonic effects possible even accompanied by a complete choir that despite existing on polar opposites of the musical spectrum somehow perform the great dance together although both musical realities are in reality subordinate to the nexus of Antoniou’s beastly and charismatic domination.

However, despite the similarities between CODEX EFFECT and “Titan,” there remains one fundamental difference. That being that despite everything “Titan” had going for it, it was lacking in the most basic prerequisite of all, namely interesting compositions. Apparently the band got the memo about this trivial little faux pas and decided to correct the matter in the three year gap and succeeds in creating a very listenable album indeed.

One of my main gripes with SEPTICFLESH is that they produce outstanding music that culminates on the first side of the album and then slowly fizzles out into generic forgetfulness. They seem to be the symphonic death metal version of Soundgarden who suffered a similar fate. On CODEX EFFECT, the band seems to have paid attention to the pacing of the myriad elements involved in the project in order to make an easier to follow album’s length of material. I find the material on CODEX EFFECT to be some of the best the band has ever conjured up and granted that they are merely perfecting their style rather than adding any new experimental touches, i find this to be a satisfying listen from beginning to end unlike the majority of the prior canon.

At this point SEPTICFLESH is an institutional force in the death metal world having been around for well over a quarter of a century and while some band’s peak and fizzle out and fade away into obscurity, SEPTICFLESH on the other hand takes notes on their past mistakes and opts to learn from them rather than ignoring that they existed. CODEX EFFECT shows the band on top of their game with not only some of their best death metal hooks laid down to digital form but likewise construct some of the most conducive philharmonic shadow effects that perfectly gel with the greater groove. CODEX EFFECT is a great return to form after a rather lopsided “Titan” and a series of albums that while great initially seem to run on autopilot after several tracks in. I’m finding this to be a great comeback and a reality check in realizing the shortcomings of previous works and how they could have been better.

UMUR "The Great Mass" is the 8th full-length studio album by Greek death metal act Septicflesh (formerly Septic Flesh). The album was released through Season of Mist in April 2011. Founded back in 1990, Septic Flesh are one of the most prolific Greek death metal acts on the scene. Stylistically they´ve gone through various phases and styles, they´ve challenged themselves and also tested their audience in the process.

"The Great Mass" may not test the band´s audience that much though, as it is more or less a continuation of the symphonic death metal style introduced on Septicflesh comeback album "Communion (2008)" (they were split-up from 2003 - 2007). Just as the case was on the predecessor guitarist Christos "Chris" Antoniou (who has a masters degree in concert music from the London College of Music) has written comprehensive orchestral scores to accompany the death metal basis of the band´s music. The scores are performed by The International Choir of Prague and The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. The music features a couple of samples but otherwise all classical instruments are played by a real orchestra.

Now on paper it always sounds impressive with a classical orchestra and choir in rock/metal music, but in my experience the combination fails more often than not. "The Great Mass" is one of those rare cases where it works though. Firstly the sound production is powerful, detailed, and clear enough to allow all instruments to be heard. Secondly the classical orchestra and choir work with the core death metal tracks and not against them or parallel with them, which is where a lot of other similar projects fail, and third and last the quality of the compositions are really high and specifically designed for the purpose. These guys didn´t just write a bunch of death metal tracks and as an afterthought decided to put classical instrumentation on top of them.

Needless to say the musicianship are on a high level, both when it comes to the classical musicians and the band themselves. The growling vocals are powerful (could have been a bit more intelligible, but that´s always a matter of aquired taste), the rhythm section is precise and the guitars and guitar themes delivered with conviction. The materal are also intriguing and varied so all in all "The Great Mass" is a strong symphonic death metal release by Septicflesh and a 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

Time Signature Towards the topmost step of the Earth...

Genre: symphonic/gothic death metal

Released in 1997, Ophidian Wheel proved a major milestone in the musical development of SepticFlesh's, as it was on this album they transitioned from traditional death metal into the symphonic gothic death metal sound that characterizes their current efforts. The album was reissued this october on their current label Season of Mist with three bonus tracks and an awesome new cover artwork.

Ophidian Wheel opens rather weakly with 'The Future Belongs to the Brave'. The problem here is twofold. Firstly, the track itself is simply not among the most convincing songs composed by this otherwise very talented band. Secondly, the production is rather tinny, and the new mastering does not really seem to have helped much. Consequently, the ear which is attuned to the pristine and crisp production of modern metal releases has to get adjusted to the less refined sound on this album at the cost of the opening track. However, if the listener sticks around and listens the entire album through, the listener will soon realize that the rest of the album is pretty good. What I like about it is the eclectic nature of the album, as the listener is treated to od school death metal riffage and harsh vocals appearing side-by-side with symphonic elements and a gothic meodicism. Several tracks on the album sound like a more sophisticated version of Gothic-era Paradise Lost, in the sense that the album is full of melodic doom metal passages. There is also some pretty avant-garde stuff on the album, such as the dramatic 'Tartarus'.

A good album though it is, Ophidian Wheel suffers from not to convicing symphonic elements performed on a synthesizer (in 1997) which sound more like something out of a 1990s fantasy computer game than anthing else. Still, this does not really detract from the compositions or the performance, and the album remains an enjoyable listen. As for the three bonus tracks, I think that the reissue does not really need them, but, then again, I can imagine that hardcore fans of the band will be thrilled to hear them anyway.

Definitely not the best alum by Septicflesh, but perhaps the most important one, Ophidian Wheel should be of great interest to fans of their more recent efforts, such as The Great Mass, because this is where it started. Although I have my reservations towards this album, I really enjoy its eclectic nature and appreciate the gothic doom passages in particular.

(review originally posted at seaoftranquility.org)

The Block Septicflesh, hailing from Greece, has been around for about 20 years leading up to this release, yet never once have I heard their music. That being said, this sure was a great introduction. Mixing brutal death metal with brilliant orchestra sections, Septicflesh has created their own unique brand of symphonic death metal. All throughout “The Great Mass”, blast beats and powerful guitar riffs also adorn the beautiful orchestration. Though this may be a turn off for some metal fans, it adds a different, yet great aspect to the music that, at least to me, adds to the overall enjoyment of this album.

“The Great Mass” is an almost perfect balance between symphonic metal and death metal. Take, for example, the first track “The Vampire from Nazareth” which, besides being a great intro, starts out very symphonic and almost atmospheric and then transfers into heavier riffs in an almost seamless fashion. The death metal sections of this album definitely lean towards the melodic side of death metal rather than the straight up, hardcore death metal fashion. While most people might not be used to this combination of music, many will soon figure out that it is, in face, quite good.

Another thing that I like about this album is that there are both harsh growls and clean vocals. The growls of Spiros Antoniou are pretty normal, yet they contribute very well to the bands style. This is especially evident on “Five- Pointed Star”, which is definitely one of the best songs on the album. Sotiris Vayenas’s clean vocals are a whole other matter. His voice is very odd, leaning into a weird almost crazy pitch during most of the album, but it sounds really cool with the rest of the music. Perhaps the best part of this album is the keyboards, played by Sotiris Vayenas, which add a nice over tone to the whole album.

While being a relatively old death metal band, Septicflesh has still found a way to continue to release very good material. “The Great Mass” isn’t necessarily ground breaking but it provides lots of enjoyment through its music. The orchestration on this album is fantastic, and the production of it is clear and crisp, making everything much better. For a great release Septicflesh gets 4 stars.