Vesania

God The Lux
Napalm Records

7.5/10 – Dimmu Borgir, Behemoth & panties?

12 tracks; 40min

What’s with all the slagging I’ve been reading lately on the use of keyboards in Black Metal? I mean, if it is done well & compliments the music, what the hell is the big deal? I kinda get the feeling that the people complaining about it are the same people who complain about gays in the military and gay marriages – supposedly they are the ones questioning their sexuality, right? I guess keyboards do not exude the machismo associated with the ‘tough’ metal guy (but secretly we all know they are dancing around in their frilly panties to this stuff!)

Now, Vesania are guilty of the occasional outburst of ivory tinkling (ok, more than an occasional outburst) but they don’t allow the keys to become the focal point of their songs. Here, maybe this will explain it a little better: we all know Dimmu Borgir, right? And we all know of the hit song ‘Progenies of the Great Apocalypse’ right? Well, this is a perfect example of constructing a song around the keyboard. ‘Progenies’ contains approximately 2 or 3 guitar riffs that are purposely mixed way back to allow room for the grandiose keyboard arrangements. ‘Progenies’ is a very simplistic song based around a huge keyboard riff. Vesania avoids this trap completely by never allowing the keyboard to play an overly important role. Their songs are symphonic in nature, but without the fluff that is sometimes associated with the genre. They manage to keep the songs technically interesting & with enough viciousness to appeal to those who may not normally do the symphonic thing. In fact, there are some rather BRUTAL moments on this, at times sounding like Behemoth and Vader! This is totally understandable, cos within Vesania’s ranks are former members of both bands, Orion and Daray respectively.

Don’t let the symphonic tag fool ya, cos God The Lux contains enough of that Polish Death Metal thing to keep most fans of extreme music content. It may not speak to the underground in the same way as Behemoth or Vader, but it is still worthy of your time & attention. Check it out!

Jason Deaville