Thy Will Be Done on Earth as Is Done in Hell

Formed in 2006 by Petra Sobotka, Artep is a Canadian symphonic black metal band that released their debut full length in 2010, entitled “Thy Will Be Done on Earth as is Done in Hell”. While the band seems to have the basics of the style down, the execution and production keep this from being anything worth your time. If you’re pretty astute, you may have already realized that Artep is “Petra” spelled backwards. Unfortunately for Artep their name is not the only thing the band has backwards.

“Birth of the Antichrist” starts the album with a giant whimper. Noodling keys, MIDI samples and synthesized strings begin the album with about as much force as a silent fart. It actually sounds like something ripped from the Harry Potter movies, only less sinister. While the band does later pick up speed, to include blastbeats and fast paced trem riffs, the production is weak and keeps from being intense in the least bit. Take a track like, “Antichrist”, which blasts away with blistering double bass runs and a fairly standard trem line: it’s fast and it’s played fairly well, but the guitars have no depth to them, only tittering on the surface, and the drum sound is garbage, literally, like someone is banging on trashcans and refuse. The main problem is that both instruments continuously vie for your attention, drowning each other out. The muffled bass drum and cymbals and watered down guitar lines fall victim to the overly loud snare pop that sounds more like a hollow wooden box than a snare drum. Everything, and I repeat everything, is coated with a thick amount of synthesized keyboard arrangement, further drowning out the guitars and drums, and marking the third competitor for your attention. The sheer amount of symphonic elements used here demands your attention. Just listen to the synthesized strings during the middling section of “Armageddon”: they completely drown out every other instrument. Is there a guitar riff there? I don’t know because I can’t hear anything behind the blasting symphonic strings. The vocals are always up front and personal, which is not to the band’s benefit. The vocals are a standard harsh, raspy style, perhaps a little higher pitched than usual. Every vocal line has been run through the processor and filtered using the same type of studio magic used by Dimmu Borgir during the slower parts. Yes, every single vocal line sounds like it was filtered through some distant telephone recorder. The sheer amount of symphonic elements used here demands the listener’s attention. Just listen to the synthesized strings during the middling section of “Armageddon”: they completely drown out every other instrument. Is there a guitar riff there? I don’t know because I can’t hear anything behind the blasting symphonic strings. When the symphonic elements aren’t drowning out the rest of the band, the drums and guitars consistently fight each other for the forward spot in the mix. The rest of the album continues in this vein until it’s over.

Don’t get me wrong, there are some enjoyable sections mixed in, but they are the undisputed minority. “Eruption” darts from blastbeats and trem lines into an acoustic segment with surprisingly well-placed symphonic elements and right back into the blastbeats again. It makes the following segment seem so much heavier the second time around. “Crossing the Acheron” has a slower, doomy approach, which thankfully changes up the pace a bit, with a fairly solid yet simplistic lead guitar floating over the song. Unfortunately the rhythm guitars and drum beats are muffled and vying for attention the whole time. “Black War” shows the band using an airy keyboard melody over a fairly restrained guitar line and double kicked drum line, but it eventually turns into blasting with keyboards like the rest of the album.

It takes a lot for me to completely write off a band, but I’m pretty damn close here. Like, I said, the band has some good ideas and the execution is decent, but that production is so god awful it’s not even funny. If the band releases an album where they actually care about production values, then maybe I’ll give them another go. I guess if you worship at the throne of Dimmu Borgir and Alghazanth you might find something entertaining here. “Thy Will Be Done on Earth as is Done in Hell” has some good ideas, but the production keeps it from being enjoyable. If the band actually thinks that the production sounds good here, than they need to just stop and find some other hobby to entertain themselves.

Written for The Metal Observer:
http://www.metal-observer.com/