Apage Satanas

It’s ‘98 and you’re a fan of heavy metal. How screwed are you? Well, unless you live in the Czech Republic, you may indeed have trouble. But Czech Republic’s most popular metal act, Arakain, had different thoughts when they unleashed their 13-song record called “Apage Satanas”. After their biggest commercial flop, the horrible “S.O.S.”, the band finally took some time off to work on the new material rather than blasting out an album every year.

… and thank fuck they did it, because this is a sizeable improvement. The Pantera influence is very strong, but it is still mixed with a hefty amount of classic heavy metal. The melodies shine through in most cases, and make “Apage Satanas” the the catchiest of all Arakain records. That’s also why it was met with a much better response. It seems that every aspect of the music had been improved, and doubly so for the lead vocalist, Aleš Brichta.

Aleš manages to inject a lot of personality into the songs with his deep voice. Be it some balladic, dreamy atmosphere, an aggressive yell or calm, melodic singing, he does exactly the thing that benefits the songs most. Sure, his range has always been fairly limited, but listen to “Karavana Slibů”, where he brings in some soothing singing in the mellow sections before taking a commanding presence alongside the double-bass pounding in the chorus. Some nice songwriting to be found here.

The issue that plagues “Apage Satanas” is its inconsistency, although it is manifested in a different way than, say “Salto Mortale” 4 years before. Some ideas are viable, but developed in a slightly off-putting way or just taken out of context (the out-of-place ‘oooh’ chorus in track #9). Some moments, while not terrible, are just blatant Pantera rip-offs (“Špatný Dny” quite shamelessly recycles “Mouth For War”). And there is also “Princess”, which deliberately dissects Accept’s “Princess of the Dawn” and creates a new song out of some of its parts. Not pointless, to be honest, since the lyrics do have a nostalgia value, but I’d much rather listen to Accept.

But when “Apage Satanas” strikes, it hits where it hurts, presenting some very ballsy heavy metal. The main riff of the opener, “A Zvony Zvoní” is 100% headbangable, and when it shifts and Brichta starts roaring in the bridge, you have a real winner. The aforementioned “Karavana Slibů” is the band’s crowning achievement in the field of ballads. There is also Arakain’s jab at sounding really epic. The title track starts off with a memorable acoustic part before culminating in a massive chorus of several voices. It’s barely over 4 minutes, which is almost a shame, as this could have been easily built up some more. Still, this is a powerful song and a well-deserved live staple.

Besides Brichta’s peak performance, the two most reliable instrumentalists are in fine form here. Marek Žežulka gets the groove going, and even throws in some punishing fills in “Návrat Bohů”, where he combines with Mach’s bluesier style of lead guitar. Another very good track, although it seems surprisingly restrained. Mirek Mach on the lead guitar rules as usual, but out of all Arakain records, “Apage Satanas” is the one that sounds the most like a team effort.

While there is some filler, the track ordering could also be a bit better. The album starts off with a bang, as three out of the first songs are quite driving and aggressive, but does lose a bit of its intensity in the middle. While not bad at all, songs like “Navrat Bohů” or “Trip” aren’t exactly aggressive - their sombre and/or odd mood (again, provided by the deep vocals) do kill the momentum of the record a little bit. On their own, they sound much more convincing than when spinning the whole record.

There’s just not much else to say - for the most part, Arakain got this one right. If you can handle a fairly significant Pantera influence, the material is definitely there. Some of the missteps are minor, and the highlights rank among the best songs in Arakain’s career, which is something not be taken lightly, given their decent consistency. Plus, if you want to hear how strong Aleš Brichta’s singing could be, this is the record to check out.