Sacrament of Blood

Why can't I rate this beyond 100%? Is Metal Archives malfunctioning? Probably, it isn't recognizing how perfect this album is.

I will readily admit that I have not checked out much of Blasphemy's work outside of their two first albums, nor many bands that imitate their sound. Hell, I can't name any band that belongs to this genre other than Blasphemy, Antichrist, and Revenge (why do all the crazy bestial/war metal bands seem to hail from my country, hmm?) I believe - or believed, as you will shortly read about - that this subgenre of black/death ain't my kind of snuff. So with my entry level knowledge prefacing this review, let it be known that Antichrist has convinced me to check out similar bands in the future. In other words this album's fucking amazing, especially if it's your first foray into war metal. I would recommend it over any other war metal band as a beginner album. There's no hyperbole to be found here.

Lastly, this album is going to be likened to Blasphemy's debut album, Fallen Angel of Doom, quite often. Comparing these two makes a lot of sense.

Antichrist is obviously a Blasphemy imitator, so close in fact that they share(d?) the same city, Vancouver. Fledgling bands and artists, take note and move to British Columbia immediately. Vancouver is shit. So rife with shit, you will find your misanthropic little heart rot and shrink three sizes permanently before you even take a step off your method of travel. So with that in perspective it becomes obvious why two of the most sonically violent and mania inducing bands hail from the same location. I digress; let me stop cracking paragraph long jokes and discuss something worth discussing, the music.

Sacrament of Blood's first twenty seconds open with one of black metal's most tried-and-true movie samples belonging to The Exorcist. "LET JESUS FUCK YOU!!" This sample has been used a countless amount of times, but only Antichrist (and Marduk, but I digress) can get away with sampling this scene by exceeding the intensity with such an aggressive introduction that the sample's creepiness is reduced to that of a child's fairy-tale book. And then the vocals are introduced! Yes that's right, I took another paragraph describing a twenty second sample followed by five seconds of an intro that had yet to feature any vocals whatsoever. That is how devilish this album is. Further peppered throughout, sparingly, are intros to future tracks that do not immediately bombard you with metal, but not once do they overstay their welcome or detract from the enjoyability of the record.

Back to the vocals, Blasphemy's vocalist is like projectile vomiting Satan's diarrhea. Impressive and evil. But Antichrist seems to have invoked the spirit of Satan himself to sing as a session vocalist. It's better than Blasphemy. Your first glimpse of what's to come from one of extreme metal's most, well, extreme singers, is an infectious, reverb-addled gurgle of blackened phlegm-y death that isn't banshee wails or clownish pig squeals followed by some thoroughly ghoulish throat raping from start to finish. There is NO bullshit here. It's truly harrowing. In some songs ("Unholy Devourment" for a quick list), you'll even get to hear your dark lord himself roar the unholiest roars I think have ever been bellowed out in the history of mankind, let alone recorded. Such gusto!

The instrumentation to be found here would rile up even the wimpiest man into successfully committing murder-suicide. Greater men would seek atrocities such as genocide. Ferocious with no respite or mercy, just the way it should be. That's all that can be effectively said about the playing.

We're nearing the end. I do not think there is much value in pointing out tracks beyond the intro. Let me just be blunt and concise: this entire album is too good to pick any standout tracks!

Antichrist's Sacrament of Blood is a wall of noise that maintains its integrity and clarity throughout the run time. I cannot say the same for Blasphemy's Fallen Angel of Doom. Despite being a big fan of raw, dense, filthy and lo-fi metal, I find the haphazard production on Fallen Angel of Doom to occasionally jeopardize its contents and extremity. Consider it a blessing (debatably the last thing that should be said for such a record) that this album was mixed a decade and a half after its recording. The foresight and wisdom brought with time allows Sacrament of Blood to not repeat the mistakes of the past while simultaneously being a product of the past.

In closing, dare I once more declare this album superior to Fallen Angel of Doom? Certainly. While progenitors of their genres and sub-genres are oft indisputably the best, once in awhile the future generations usurp the throne and deliver. Fairly speaking though I don't think any future Antichrist project, should they come into existence, will hold a candle to Sacrament of Blood. This album's from 1994 and to only be officially released decades later makes it a very weird time capsule of a record.

Antichrist's Sacrament of Blood is quite possibly the best thing I've heard in ages. It's Blasphemy worship of the highest caliber. The riffs are amazing, the vocals fucking kill, and the production is PERFECT. Basically in a genre with only one king, these guys are the heir to the throne.

Don't get the wrong idea I LOVE Proclamation (before Antichrist they were the next best thing to Blasphemy as far as that sound was concerned), Black Witchery, Blasphemophagher, and a whole host of other Blasphemy inspired bands, but Antichrist just smokes that stuff. I've even heard rumblings that some people prefer this stuff to Blasphemy (which I think is overstating it just a tad). However, if your love is for raw, bestial metal, this is the best metal album since Gods of War.

I suppose since I just called this the best metal album since 1993, saying that this is, without a doubt, my album of the year, seems sort of redundant. I'd go on record to state that it's already amongst my top 10 of all time just because it does the style that I prefer amongst all metal styles better than every band that has ever attempted it (Black Witchery, Beherit, Archgoat, etc. etc.) except for the masters (Blasphemy).

I'm sure some people are sitting there saying that this review is full of exaggerations and hyperbole. I'm certainly prone to do that to make a point, and I'll be the first person to admit to it. This however, is my honest opinion. I really thought that NOTHING could dethrone that Hades Archer album this year...but this just came out of nowhere a few months ago and blew my fucking mind.

Lost to the Sands of Time until it finally found its release this year, Antichrist's Sacrament of Blood is a blistering, demonic mass of Satan worshiping bestial black metal circa 1994. For whatever reason, Sacrament of Blood remained unreleased for sixteen years. I did a little research as to why this was, but found nothing: an acquaintance of mine who has shared correspondence with members of Blasphemy said that real life got in the way at some point and the band never got around to releasing the album. And it is interesting to think about the possibilities had this album been released on time: it was recorded in during the infancy of bestial black metal, and the band hailed from the same horrific crib as Blasphemy(the hellish landscape of British Columbia). Would history have looked as kindly upon this as they did upon Fallen Angel of Doom?

But what could have been means little now, and Sacrament of Blood is a slab of filthy misanthropic noise that feels right at home no matter the era of it's release. The sheer Satanic aggression on display here is truly impressive: each track is short and leaves little room for things like breathing or humanity. Antichrist are here to kick down the door of the local coven, rape the nuns and burn the fucker down, and that is exactly what they accomplish here. The riffs are the highlight: plenty of tempo changes keep things interesting, and few albums will create as many sudden explosions of head-banging this year. The vocal attack is impressive and varied, even if the reverb is a bit on the obnoxious side. It is also worth noting that the entire album was recorded live in a single day, which considering the very even mix and the nasty guitar and bass sound, is massively impressive.

There is a real crust punk vibe to the entire thing: it feels like one should be sucking down a beer in some basement while watching the band go through their set and after the show going out back and smoking a joint. Sacrament in Blood is not trying to suffocate you with overly done atmosphere or open portals to Hell in your kitchen. They are trying to kick your ass and have it be as much fun as possible. In a scene that has become incredibly serious, self absorbed and frankly internet hip, Sacrament in Blood stands out aesthetically from the rest of the pack, and pretty much shits all over many of the super-serious, Occult-and-HP Lovecraft obsessed bands peddling their Blasphemy worship out there today. Only Morbosidad seem to have the same vibe, and no doubt the guys in Morbosidad would have loved this had it been released in 1994(and should be loving it now).

There are no real fault here, other than the vocal reverb and the rather corny samples that will evoke goregrind more than bestial black metal, but those are small things in the face of the overall package. My final score is not indicative enough to point out that you, as a fan of bestial black metal, should be getting this album right now. Truly required listening, with an attitude and approach that hopefully a few bands will imitate in the future.

Rating: 9/10

originally posted at http://curseofthegreatwhiteelephant.blogspot.com/