I Loved You at Your Darkest

This review is so painful for me to write for so many reasons. Let's just say that Nergal is a huge influence for me and Behemoth is one of my favorite, all-time, death metal bands. While this record is not all that bad, it is definitely not the Behemoth I know and love. Sorry, Nergal; I love you man, but this is starting to veer pretty darn close to a "St Anger" level release...

For starters, I am not sure what Nergal was thinking with the song-writing with this record. On the one hand, the typical blasphemy is present, which is always welcome. On the other hand, it feels like he is loosening up with the guitar playing and music. It seems that he thoiught to himself that, "Yeah, I have done it all and proven myself. Now, I don't need to play so extreme anymore. I can relax a bit." Sure, I can understand the sentiment when a band has been playing at a high level for this long. But, come on? I think this illustrates my feeling on this record; Behemoth has toned it down quite a bit and it shows.

What is most important for any album is the song-writing and that is, unfortunately, my biggest gripe with this record. So, on one hand we have Behemoth lightening up and writing a much softer album, and on the other hand, the song-writing is not as good. These two things combine to make for a lack-luster album that warrants a great deal of criticism. Many of the riffs are straight, rock-n-roll riffs. They aren't bad riffs, per se, but they are fairly weak. The drumming supports this with equally light, swinging rock drums. Not through the whole album, mind you, but there are extended forays. Songs such as "Sabbath Mater" and "Ecclesia Diabolica Catholica" (until the end of the song) feel a bit cheesy, light, and "not metal" to me. They aren't bad songs, mind you, just not befitting for Behemoth's legacy.

Still, there are plenty of heavy moments and there are some great songs on here. For example, "Angelvs XIII" is an extreme, well-played song that feels more like what I would expect of the band. Songs like "Bartzabel" are triumphs on the album, being memorable, dark, and undeniably Behemoth. Inferno's drumming is stellar throughout the album even if he does a little light rock, swing here and there. The atmosphere is also quite dark through much of the album, with a raw, but well-produced vibe throughout. The vocals sound exactly like "The Satanist", which is not a bad thing. It's these heavy, memorable, atmospheric qualities of the album that lift it up and make it worthy of purchase.

Unfortunately, I don't see many people giving this entire album repeated spins over the years despite the positive qualities to be found. A select song or two, such as "Bartzabel", will certainly get repeat plays, but, not so much, the album in its entirety. Overall, this is a lackluster and half-hearted continuation of "The Satanist" and probably the weakest album in the Behemoth catalog. That is still saying a lot considering this album does have some good high points and several redeeming qualities. For now, this is the experimental album of Behemoth's catalog and one I can't say is representative of their legacy.