Belphegor have become somewhat prolific since 2006’s ‘Pestapokalypse VI’, though I hasten to add that not everything they’ve released since that album has made for a glorious listen (cough, ‘Bondage’, cough, ‘Goat Zombie’, cough). I did wonder where they could go after 2009’s ‘Walpurgis Rites’, and to be absolutely honest, it’s not very far at all.
I find some bands’ ability to progress very inspiring, though this definitely isn’t necessary for everyone; after all, if it sounds good, the last thing I’ll do is mentally chastise a band for not being adventurous enough. That said, I can’t help but feel that Belphegor are really starting to repeat themselves a bit too much. ‘Walpurgis Rites’ was a decent album and they elicited enough development to ensure the album wouldn’t show any signs of stagnation, but for this, they unfortunately have not. It’s idiosyncratic to the core of modern day Belphegor, with plenty of dynamics to keep one’s mind from wandering, but sadly it just sounds like I’ve heard it all before.
It begins promisingly enough, with plenty of energy and variety; a frantic but catchy Egyptian riff breaks out over a blast-beat, chopping and changing with a double bass attack, before the moodier verse cuts in and the tempo dives. At this point, yes, it sounds pretty typical, but there’s enough life and vigour in it to keep you from uttering the ‘s’ word (‘stagnate’ I mean!).
‘Rise to Fall and Fall to Rise’, has quite a brief, grandiose, opening, though the slow imperialistic riffs keep this up to an extent. Just in case your attention was beginning to wane a tad, the trash beats hop out just before the four minute mark to stop it from losing its zeal. The real problem though, is the title track which I can’t help but think is a kind of Frankensteined seven minutes; or to put it more clearly, lots of songs from the past four years dissected and all flung together. It’s cohesive, but utterly boring; I’ve heard it before! ‘Discipline through Punishment’ features some memorable chords in the chorus, but other than that is rather bland. This is very unfortunately, also where my notes begin to dry up.
For someone new to the band, this would not be a bad place to start a Belphegor collection. However, if you’ve been a devout follower for the last few years, you’re likely to lose interest relatively quickly I’m afraid.
http://www.belphegor.at
http://www.myspace.com/belphegor
http://www.facebook.com/belphegor
http://www.nuclearblast.de
