The Chthonic Chronicles

by

Bal-Sagoth

Edit

First of all, my review says 5 stars when I'd be more inclined to give it a 4.5, but alas one cannot rate by halves.

I don't know why this album is so good. It could be that I've eagerly anticipated it for about 3 years now, or it could be that as Bal-Sagoth's sixth album, they've polished their craft brighter than the shine of an unused sword. But there are no unused swords in the Bal-Sagoth universe. ;)

If you're a Bal-Sagoth fan, and you probably are if you're reading this, you know what to expect here. HOWEVER, gone is the cheesiness sometimes found in Sagoth's prior three releases, Atlantas Ascendant, Power Cosmic, and Battle Magic. Don't get me wrong - I absolutely LOVE all of their releases and I'm thrilled I could finally get my claws on this sixth (and final?) Bal-Sagoth recording.

Other than that expect more of the same. This album is their heavest, most black metalesque release to date. Yes, Byron still utilizes both black metal shrieks and his lower "narrator" voice, so to speak. The production quality is easily their best by far and Byron's black metal shrieks are somehow much better and far more fierce this time around.

I am a bit disappointed by the sticker on the cover of EVERY copy of "The Chthonic Chronicles" drawing parallels to both Star Wars and Cradle of Filth. This is just untrue, pretentious, and quite silly.

It's untrue because Bal-Sagoth don't write songs about vampires and star destroyers. It's pretentious because they are trying to sell albums by comparing themselves with Cradle of Filth, and it's silly because, well, record execs make stupid marketing decisions. I'm sure the band itself had nothing to do with this labeling so I'm not slamming them.

Besides, at this point Bal-Sagoth are far and away a better band than the once great Cradle of Filth. Just because both bands hail from the U.K doesn't make them alike musically.

With all that said definitely pick this up if you are a Bal-Sagoth fan, and if you're into this kind of metal but are not familiar with Bal-Sagoth's style pick it up and give it a shot.

At the time of this writing I'm still trying to decide if I like this more than my former favorite Bal-Sagoth release, their second album "Starfire Burning Upon the Ice-Veiled Throne of Ultima Thule".

Bal-Sagoth: Get your asses to the U.S and do a tour already. You DO have fans here.

Fans: Don't wait - you can purchase this album from a certain big name metal website with the word "century" in it. I'm pretty sure I won't be allowed to plug a website here, so that's the only clue you get - that's where I got my copy.

Screw the May U.S.A release. Get it NOW and crank it up!