Sabbat of Behezaël

So I came across Perverted Ceremony and bought it just because the cover looked so sick! Knowing now that this is their debut full-length, “Sabbat of Behezaël” is without a doubt a masterpiece that left me speechless and wanting for more by this Belgian project. This creation is by the works of two musicians who have never been seen before; other than Morbid Messiah's very own Moenen of Xezbeth, which was released in 2017 around the same time as this album, Perverted Ceremony seems to be the two members' pride and joy for now.

This record is strangling, cold, bloody, and demonic. The album has this dizzying blend of pure noise accompanied by an evil sounding, vintage organ at times which can be heard in the opening to "Crypt of Behezaël". The sound introduced immediately proves that this record was recorded without much refinement, adding to the cavernous aura given off. Often, the meld of sound seemingly darts from slow to fast, keeping you fastened to your seat as you attempt to hang on for dear life while spinning through a hellish black sacrament. The tempo is changing constantly, making the noise a lot more notable than many other contemporary black metal projects. This tempo change is noticed especially in "Whips of Impurity", which is also the song I find most interesting in the entire album. The riffs of the guitar are clearly tremolo along with a low bass which creates a dark layering to confuse the listener. Unfortunately, the bass is not so special though, with such creative music-work, I would have hoped that the bass differed from the notes of the guitar. For example, "Black Fur Demoniac" has the loudest bass work in the entire album, however, it turns out to just be the same notes from the guitar earlier. The guitar-work, especially in "Necrolactation Unborn Goat", is just mean, accompanying this scream that hacks from a demon being strangled by Satan himself. Speaking of the vocals, they are an incredible ode to Beherit. Just like with Beherit's own Nuclear Holocausto Vengeance, Morbid Messiah's vocal work makes his whispering become hissing, and that hissing become wailing. Often, the vocals swirl to become a black mass of demoncy; it sounds occultish, it feels occultish, it is occultish.

This album was a fantastic addition to 2017; I found myself spinning it more than I had imagined and currently continue to do so. In fact, I felt more compelled to listen to this album than I did with Beherit's "Drawing Down the Moon", although that album is more than 20 years older. It may not be a gamechanger to the black metal scene, but it certainly holds up to many bands with a distinguished history in metal. I really do enjoy this debut and wish for this project's success; I know I will be keeping an eye out for any future records by them.