Seventh Day of Doom

This has to be one of the most unique releases I have ever heard in my life. If I had to give it only one adjective it would be "savage" but that would be taking it to an undeserved reductionism as there are several layers to this work.

First the musicianship, belonging to the first wave of black metal it is not uncommon to find obvious heavy and speed metal influences in the music, but I think this Tormentor's work is probably the greatest example where such influences have a markedly deeper impact than the actual gloomy and satanic aesthetic aspect they were trying to have. Despite the ominous presence with the haunting intros and Attila Csihar's menacing (though sometimes comical) vocals, it all seems like mere decorum before the endless guitar solos upon which this work is built. If you've never heard this demo and wonder why the songs are so long, here's your answer. I haven't counted how many total minutes are taken up by guitar wankering in total, but I'm sure more than 50% of the time is the lead guitarist going crazy. The sound of the guitars is totally sharp and marked by a pretention for absolute speed. This may annoy those black metal puritans who consider that there is no place for guitar solos in the genre (ignorants) but the truth is that it is these that make the demo so special.

Although there is one very distinctive part that stands out above the rest this is not to say that all the work is centred around the guitar solos, there are numerous attempts to capture an oppressive atmosphere that produces a creepy vibe. There are several different intros throughout the demo that are used to foster a grim and raw ambience that easily rivals the attempts of other bands of the era such as Hellhammer or Sarcofago. They are not the aspect that will make you remember this demo, but I have to admit that I have a soft spot for such early attempts at dark and evil music. Of course the parameters have changed and listening to it now thirty-odd years later causes me a certain tenderness for its naivety and respect for its intentions to break the boundaries set by that time.

The production is absolutely terrible, being an underground demo in Hungary still in the eastern bloc during the cold war I don't think one could expect much better. However, in the poor and dirty sound of the work lies part of its charm. The low quality of the recording makes everything sound more piercing, as if they were about to push the electricity to the limit and this was to blow up the recording and that's because this work really exceeds limits without a hesitation for a second.

The biggest downside one can put on this release is that there are practically no "real songs" as one can hardly stick to specific moments of each of the songs except for the long and crazy guitar solos, it could to some extent be taken as a rehearsal with high doses of improvisation (although the solos are too well cared for to be considered as that). But that really matters little, because once you listen to this demo, the ecstasy produced by the dizzying guitars will grab you and you'll understand why that's the only thing you'll want every time you come back to "The Seventh Day of Doom".

This Hungarian outfit wasn't focused on simply playing with as much speed and aggression as possible (though they pack quite a bit of both into this energetic demo). The guitarists don't simply wail away on a few simple progressions. Instead, most of these songs take the form of lengthy series of diverse musical ideas. While there’s typically some fairly standard Venom-inspired, speed-based playing in the background, the foreground is usually dominated by numerous riffs and solos, both of which are more complicated and NWOBHM-tinged than what you’d expect. 'Damned Grave' is perhaps the most obvious example of this. An almost 10-minute instrumental, this song takes the form of a long parade of different sections. Most of the other tracks are similarly built on fast-moving parades of strong riffs and chaotic solos.

Despite the solid riffcraft, a lot of these songs are allowed to linger for too long. 'Damned Grave' is guilty of this of course, with the progression of the riffs and the endless solos starting to seem like the band is just wandering at around the 6-minute mark. 'Branded the Satan' and 'Infinite Darkness' similarly end a minute or two later than they should. As deft as axslingers Tamás Buday and Attila Szigeti may be in terms of moving their fingers across their fretboards, their solos regrettably lack focus, though their frenzied approach is fun at first. All three of the songs mentioned in this paragraph are good for most of their runtimes but sadly there comes a point toward the end of each of them where you might as well skip to the next track.

By far, the biggest blow to this demo's quality is Attila Csihar's vocals. On many of these songs, he sounds like Eric Cartman taking a stab at black metal shrieking. Where's the ghoulish rasp he employed on De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas? Where's the frightening atmosphere his voice helped provide that album with? Nowhere. Instead, we've got the famed singer delivering one of the most grating vocal performances in the genre's history. By itself, his singing is worth a 15-point deduction at least. Weirdly enough, though, it must be noted, his vocals are inexplicably far better on ‘Tormentor’ than they are anywhere else throughout The 7th Day of the Doom. I don't know why he couldn't keep this up the whole time but his inability (or unwillingness) to do so is the most damning strike against this release.

The shoddy production doesn't work in the band's favor the way it arguably does in more simplistic albums like Bathory's debut. It doesn't detract from the demo too much but The 7th Day of the Doom, being focused on fairly intricate leads, could have benefited from a clearer mix that emphasizes the guitars without simply throwing them far to the front of the mix. As it is, though, this release’s lack of refinement often leaves it feeling cluttered. The rhythm section is muddled and the guitar tone is hollow and nowhere near as muscular as it needs to be.

Overall, this is a satisfying demo with some strong riffs and some invigorating rhythm section violence but its weaknesses aren't very well hidden. While cut corners and a rough aesthetic lent other first wave black metal albums an undeniable lo-fi charm, here, they don’t do justice to the wide-ranging riffs and leads the release is crammed with. Though horrid singing and solos that always go overboard harm the demo as well, The 7th Day of the Doom has a refreshing and surprisingly ambitious approach to this sort of Mayhem-influencing sonic savagery that boasts plenty of rewarding moments.

Remember black metallers woeing the loss of the days of old? Whereupon others would point out lots of good new releases in the scene? Both groups are right. There are plenty of innovative and new releases. But stuff like this? Nope.

It's hard to believe this was releases as early as '88. This quirky demo was not per se way ahead of it's time, but it was completely different from anything around that era, or anything released now for that matter. One might argue though this isn't entirely purebred black metal. It's...weird. On the other hand, I couldn't call it anything else but black metal. It's basically a peculiar form of thrash with Attila Csizar's peculiar raw screams over it and a Satanic theme.

In a way it's comparable to Azhubham Haani: honest and straightforward riffs, but both catchy as fuck and somehow generating the feeling you're listening to something obscure and occult. But where Azhubham Haani is mostly slow melancholic black metal, Tormentor performs frantic and energetic madness (like Azhubham Haani in the faster parts). Although the speed sometimes starts mid-paced, it always goes into fast-paced riffing where they're doing awesome guitar solos half the time. What's up with that? It's almost like Dick Dale, continually they bring in new riffs and go soloing. They re-use a lot of riffs mind you, but it's a far cry from the 3-riff minimalism that would later dominate the scene.

Check out the 9 minute song Infinite Darkness. They keep returning to a basic, but kick-ass, buzzing guitar riff, while building up speed. There's guitarsolos going on continually, while Attila Csizar croaks over it at increasing pace and throws in a few mad shrieks. Or for that matter check out Mephisto: just one insane speedfest.

This might not fall into the militaristic nihilism mold, but it sure fits the anti-conventionality mold. This demo keeps maddening pace, while varying all over the place. And most of all, for me this has that 'feel' I associate with releases from the early part of a scene. No pretention, just pure honest music unlike heard before, and a special kind of atmosphere.