siLLy puPPy After the groundbreaking milestone of black metal complexities delivered by DEATHSPELL OMEGA with its lauded “Fas – Ite, Maledicti, in Ignem Aeternum,” the band released two EPs before concluding the trilogy of albums that ended with “Parcletus” with themes that focused on the highly advanced Satanic theology inspired by the philosophies of George Bataille, Michel Leiris and Pierre Klossowski but then again pretty much everything this band unleashes on to the world is about those topics so in reality makes little difference how you approach them from a chronological point of of view.

The EPs “Mass Grave Aesthetics” and VERITAS DIABOLI MANET IN AETEMUM: CHAINING THE KATECHON were both released on 8 December 2008 however VERITAS was released both as an EP and as a split with the other French black metal band S.V.E.S.T. (stands for Satanas Vobiscum et Spiritum Tuo) which i suspect may have been DEATHSPELL OMEGA’s side project as a pseudonym because stylistic approaches and especially vocal style are suspiciously similar.

The DEATHSPELL OMEGA EP consists of the sole track “Chaining The Katechon” which refers to a New Testament term used to describe the one who prevents the rise of the Antichristand therefore stopping the second coming of Christ. The track clocks in just over 22 minutes but features the classic jaw dropping characteristics of the band’s Satanic trilogy that were instrumental in taking black metal into a much higher level of philosophical and progressive credibility.

Laced with the hallmark dissonant jangle guitar riffs and the transmogrifications from creepy slow tempos to buzzsaw blastbeat fueled black metal fury, CHAINING THE KATECHON essentially served as an intermission between the final two chapters of the Satanic trilogy but was every bit as intricately designed and fueled with some of the scariest combinations of sound that have ever haunted the metal universe. Ranging from Meshuggah-like swells of dissonant metallic passages to moments of Orthodox choir chanting, CHAINING THE KATECHON excels in conjuring up demons and dwells on dreadful sounding progressive black metal with the complexities leagues above the competition.

While DEATHSPELL OMEGA has been far from what one would call a melodic black metal band, the fact that scant melodic passages are inserted into the works ensures that just enough hooks keep the listener intrigued enough to prevent them from losing their minds as the atonal jagged guitar riffs chug along with creepy atmospheres and top notch precision percussive workouts. Mikko Aspa’s unmistakable vocal style dominates the chilling soundscapes with raspy declarations of darkened ideologies but finds more moments on VERITAS to offer clean narrative proses that add to the overall diverse rotisserie of progressively infused weavings of stylistic shifts.

While very much in the ghoulish spirit of the Satanic trilogy which bookmarks this EPs place in the overall canon, VERITAS DIABOLI MANET IN AETEMUM: CHAINING THE KATECHON more than stands up on in its own in the near indescribable freakery that DEATHSPELL OMEGA is capable of crafting. The beauty of this one is that it feels more like a condensed version of the longer albums where certain segments are truncated and serves as a sampler for those brave enough to dip into this band’s world of terrifying and horrific sonic assaults. This sole track is for sure one of the band’s finest moments and a mandatory extension of the brilliant triumvirate that remains the band’s finest hours.

(((O)))

The S.V.E.S.T. part of the split was also released separately as an independent EP. Side B of the original 12” vinyl release features three tracks but appears in some databases as the 23 minute track “Le Diable est ma Raison.” The slightly weaker of the two sides, S.V.E.S.T. supposedly was formed in Nantes, France around 1997 and tackles the identity subject points that deal with theistic Satanism, devil worship and metaphysics. The similarities both musically and artistically are suspiciously identical to those of DEATHSPELL OMEGA which has always led me to wonder if these are indeed the same artists and since little is known of any of these bands’ identities it’s very possible that they may be the same band or an overlap of members. S.V.E.S.T. is purportedly the duo of vocalist Spica and multi-instrumentalist Darkkarma.

S.V.E.S.T. delivers a less atonal black metal assault and also one that is more focused on repetitive riffs as opposed to sudden stylistic shifts. The frenetic nature is very much in sync with DSO’s most furious moments and Spica’s vocals sound exactly like Mikko Aspa’s. The music is more hypnotic and less jittery but still features those same progressive bouts of time signature deviations. This split emerged after S.V.E.S.T’s sole full-length album “Urfaust” which crafted the same Satanic mysterium only exuding a much more kvlt lo-fi production that was common with the early second wave black metal scene of the 1990s. Whereas DSO’s side of the split sounds more like a highbrow theological society with the cash to employ the best technological goodies for optimal production value, S.V.E.S.T. on the other hand sounds as if the thundering ruckus was recorded live in the bowels of hell during some ritualistic demon summoning through music. Yeah, it’s just as creepy and manic but more reserved in its delivery but perfectly complements Side A thus making VERITAS DIABOLI MANET IN AETEMUM: CHAINING THE KATECHON one of the most sought after splits in all of black metal.