Mayhem “Liturgy of Death”
A band that has carried the torch of blasphemy and damnation for over forty years has been Norway’s Mayhem. Since their debut album De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, an album that has been cited as the defining album of the second wave of black metal, the band continued to be drenched in blood-soaked infamy following the actions of the its band members and their urban legend-style lore that followed the murder and church burnings in the band’s wake. Now, with the band’s seventh album, Liturgy of Death, the band continues its legacy of blasphemy, sacrilege and infamy with a sound that conjures the darkness and evil of the world that is today.
The album opens with “Ephemeral Eternity”. Building with ominous and brooding synths sections and war-like percussion, the evil and darkness of Mayhem officially kicks in. Drawing a production style similar to early 90’s second wave black metal. With dreary, soft clean vocals (potentially Garm from Ulver, but not officially confirmed) trying to pierce through the eerie and unknown, before Attila Csihar’s vocals kick in and Hellhammer’s double blasts truly bring the intensity. Teloch & Ghul deliver guitars that border on atmospheric black metal combined with doom metal in it’s simplicity in letting the riff hang and the reverb create an uneasy and foreboding feeling for the listener. The slowed-down, dirge but heavy pacing after the halfway mark adds that thundering thud of power and aggression, while also keeping the ominous and evil tone of the genre. Especially with Necrobutcher’s bass adding that deep, pulsing heartbeat to the main riff. The band brings backs the straightforward second wave black metal sound in the final moments. Starting the album off with a creative and complex album opening track.
“Despair” starts off with no ambience or aura behind it, just straightforward black metal the band became synonymous with since its formation. The chanting, bass heavy vocals add a ritualistic nature to the music before Csihar’s snarling and sniveling black metal vocals switch on and off between that and his deep bass range. With the riff consistently driving and Hellhammer blasting away, it is an instant pit starter and will definitely sound amazing live. The production and layering on the song adds a true demonic prescence to it. With Csihar’s vocals layered and almost distorted to truly add that demonic motif and inhuman power to his performance at some parts. Teloch & Ghul just shred in speed and tremolo playing throughout the song to keep the intensity and speed going throughout the almost seven-minute runtime. While also hanging back to truly let Csihar’s vocals get showcased. The track captures the progressive and atmospheric nature of later-era Mayhem while also paying homage to its roots in some of the musical direction of the band’s early years.
The album’s first single, “Weep For Nothing”, definitely just comes out the gates swinging with straight blast beats and tremolo guitars. Guitars are more in the front of the mix with Csihar being more in the background to let the band lead the charge on the track. I love the slow-headbang inducing riff with the double bass around the first quarter of the track. Showing the band can bring intensity and hostility even at half speed. Musically, it has that same 90’s play style of the genre’s origins, but with much cleaner production and with Csihar’s clean & harsh vocals becoming a little more forward in the mix near the halfway mark. The addition of an almost church organ sound backing the guitars near the closing moments amongst the cackling laughs and snarling vocals was a nice touch musically and adds to the chaos of the song. The same opening punch also kicks off “Aeon’s End”. The riff is just heavy and fast, while Necrobutcher’s bass almost takes a bit of a lead in the playing beneath the guitar. One of the shortest songs on the album, it is a nice break from the more dimensional, experimental and ambience that Mayhem has delivered so far and is more for the “purists” of the genre that just want blasts, sacrilege and tremolo guitars. Vocals just sound chaotic and all over the place, from spoken words that sound like a preacher speaking in Latin, to sniveling and shrieking growls, it showcases how versatile and creative Csihar can be and add to the band’s sound to help them stand out from their peers.
“Funeral of Existence” brings a dreary and dark nature with its opening riff and drum combo. Bringing a slower and doomier opening and a midtempo riff when the verse section kicks in. Hellhammer’s little double kick flurries in-between verses is a nice touch to pick up the pace before the chorus and he starts blasting. Especially when the reverb and chorus soaked guitars ascend above the double bass, before coming back down when the vocals come back. The four-minute mark shows the band put their foot on the gas and speed up the play style and deliver an almost Immortal sounding riff and guitar lead over Hellhammer flying over the kit. “Realm of Endless Misery” continues the same blitzkrieg opening of drums and guitars from the previous track. Another mid-tempo like guitar riff before the trademark tremolos and blast take over again that shows the same blistering attack the genre and Mayhem have been come to known for. The vocal warping coming in and out near the halfway mark is a nice production and mixing choice, adding an anxious, uneasy feeling leading into a nice bass lead section by Necrobutcher. With his bass really being more prominent following his lead and rings through at certain points for the remainder of the track.
“Propitious Death” has Csihar leading front and center, especially with his vocals being amplified and layering adding more heft to his vocals. His voice, clashing with the almost chugging riffs of Teloch & Ghul (which I would never thought I’d describe a black metal riff as “chugging”). Another straightforward, no frills approach, the juxtaposition of black metal pacing and mid-tempo riff and drums, combined with Csihar’s vocal juggling is a unique mix and does break-up some of the similar sounding moments from the previous two tracks. Album closer “The Sentence of Absolution” brings back that doom-like guitar strums just hanging in the ether. Letting the music and wind sounds create a feeling of isolation and dread. Akin to the opening of the band’s classic “Freezing Moon”. The bass lead and tribal-like drumming, combined with the spoken vocals and then crashing guitars brings a great opening aesthetic to the album’s final piece. As the longest song on the album, the track doesn’t feel boring or get lost in itself with this one. The band seems focused and doesn’t drag. Teloch & Ghul are very good at keeping the track going and interesting. Mixing up the pacing with the riffs they choose throughout and preventing the song from becoming stagnant or losing its luster throughout the seven-and-a-half minute runtime. Good closer that truly encapsulates the tone of the modern-era of Mayhem.
After seven long years since the band’s last record Daemon, Liturgy of Death I think will appease the patient’s fanbase bloodthirst for a new album. Standout tracks like “Weep For Nothing” and the album’s closing track just scratch that later-era Mayhem sound I adored and delivered that blasphemic and brooding sound that kills live when you see the band. Noticing that with this album having a lot of the band’s longest songs to date, I think there were some moments that the song could’ve finished a minute sooner or shortened a tiny bit. I don’t think the band was padding the songs to get to a certain length, but for me, I think that was the only thing that maybe hindered it from getting a perfect score for me. Overall, Liturgy of Death shows that after forty years, these Norwegian legends still can be more blasphemic than anyone and deliver a harsh, volatile and evil album that truly embodies the darkness and evil the world we live in today.
SCORE: 4.5 / 5
You can pre-order Liturgy of Death through the band’s Century Media Records’ Bandcamp or stream the album on their Spotify when the album comes out February 6th. The band will embark on a European tour with support from Marduk and Immolation. Check out tour dates and purchase tickets HERE.
