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National Music Reviews
Mayhem
Esoteric Warfare
Season of Mist
Street: 06.10
Mayhem = Thorns + old school Bathory
Veteran members and household names Hellhammer, Attila and Necrobutcher have returned from the void and have brought a fresh, nefarious character back with them. From the first notes on “Watcher,” newest initiate Teloch ferociously exhibits his own personal guitar style while pushing familiar neo-Mayhem themes into an uncharted warzone. I am reminded of the heavier sounds found on the post-Euronymous incarnation of the band on “Trinity,” “Pandaemon” and “Throne Of Time.” Though it’s not reinventing the wheel that is called De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, there is an interesting filth caked into the mix, which makes listening to the album a new, refreshing experience. I must admit that I approached this album like the new Godzilla movie, warily poking at it with the assumption it would either be shittier than an un-wiped ass or just all right. Unlike Godzilla, Esoteric Warfare exceeded expectations: it’s a thoughtful and uncompromising journey into sweet, unbridled carnage that lives up to “The True” reputation attached to the name.
Esoteric Warfare
Season of Mist
Street: 06.10
Mayhem = Thorns + old school Bathory
Veteran members and household names Hellhammer, Attila and Necrobutcher have returned from the void and have brought a fresh, nefarious character back with them. From the first notes on “Watcher,” newest initiate Teloch ferociously exhibits his own personal guitar style while pushing familiar neo-Mayhem themes into an uncharted warzone. I am reminded of the heavier sounds found on the post-Euronymous incarnation of the band on “Trinity,” “Pandaemon” and “Throne Of Time.” Though it’s not reinventing the wheel that is called De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, there is an interesting filth caked into the mix, which makes listening to the album a new, refreshing experience. I must admit that I approached this album like the new Godzilla movie, warily poking at it with the assumption it would either be shittier than an un-wiped ass or just all right. Unlike Godzilla, Esoteric Warfare exceeded expectations: it’s a thoughtful and uncompromising journey into sweet, unbridled carnage that lives up to “The True” reputation attached to the name.
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