Diabolicum Releasing Ia Pazuzu (The Abyss Of The Shadows) On July 7th


diabolicum Ia pazuzu (the abyss of the shadows)

Cult Swedish industrial black metallers Diabolicum will be releasing their first release in 14 years (and third overall) with Ia Pazuzu (The Abyss Of The Shadows) on July 7, 2015 via Code666/Aural Music. This one features Shining‘s Niklas Kvarforth on vocals.

Initially spawed in 1994 by Sasrof and Thorne under the Imperial moniker, Diabolicum stand among the prime instigators of the industrial black metal scene. The collective’s first demo appeared under the title Mori Voluntaria. The tape was recorded in just two days at a mental hospital and included the session vocals of Blackblood (Tommy Dahlström now of Aeon). Following various personnel shifts, Imperial unleashed The Imperial Darkness demo with vocals and lead guitar handled by Thyrfing (Stefan Dhalberg) with third demo, De FÆrdÆmdas Legion, unveiled by Arte De Occulta shortly thereafter. By 1997, members of Imperial formed black metal collective, Helvete, together with Mysteriis and Kraath of Setherial. The project was put on hold when guitarist Sasrof took over bass responsibilities for Setherial.

Ia Pazuzu (The Abyss Of The Shadows) Track Listing:
01: Baxxar Ehl Uhza
02: The Void Of Astaroth
03: The Silent Spring
04: Genocide Bliss
05: Salvation Through Vengeance
06: The Abyss Of The Shadows
07: One Mans War
08: Angelmaker
09: Ia Pazuzu

Diabolicum 2015 Lineup:
Niklas Kvarforth – vocals
Sasrof – guitars
Gorgorium – bass
Likstrand – guitar

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Hidden (Blackened) Treasures – The Watcher from Fen


With their last proclamation Carrion Skies (Code666), British band Fen let the Black Metal flood back into their sound, releasing their strongest album to date and ultimately featuring in the Ghost Cult Magazine Top 40 Albums of 2014. In celebration of opening the sluice gates, front man The Watcher revealed the depth of his Black Metal love by unveiling his Top 5 unsung oft overlooked underground treasures

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Setherial – Nord (Napalm Records – 1996)

Cold. That’s the one overriding word to sum up this furious blast of mid-nineties Swedish black metal – cold. Freezing, even. Taking its cues fairly heavily from Emperor’s seminal In the Nightside Eclipse (Candlelight) album, Nord strips backs the keyboards whilst simultaneously cranking up the intensity levels considerably. Riff after riff of freezing melody pours forth across thundering percussion, lengthy songs (the opener alone is nearly 12 minutes long) buoyed by relentless twists and turns. An exhilarating, windswept listen and serious contender for black metal’s finest hour.

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Diabolical Masquerade – Nightwork (Avantgarde Music – 1998)

Anders Nystrom may be much better known for his “day job” in Katatonia but back in the mid-90s, as the mysterious Blakkheim he released four records of haunting, horror-themed black metal under the banner of Diabolical Masquerade. The pick is undoubtedly the third full-length Nightwork, a peak-laden brace of songs replete with infections fretwork, searing melody and an underlying sense of humour. This isn’t at all to detract from the ‘abandoned mansion’ atmospherics of the album and Nightwork simply oozes a convincing crepuscular ambience in amongst the riffage.

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Armagedda – Ond Spiritism (Agonia – 2004)

From pure early Darkthrone worship on their debut to ‘fist-in-the face’ muscular black metal on ‘Only True Believers’ to occult-themed dungeonesque roamings, Sweden’s Armagedda explored a gamut of expressions within their short, three-album career. Swansong ‘Ond Spiritism’ is the peak – a lengthy, sprawling opus with an undeniable cloak of darkness wafting across the whole thing. Graav’s guttural croak spits venom in his native Swedish whilst the guitars and bass swirl like a thick fog. Absorbing and unsettling work from the young Swedes.

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Tenebrae in Perpetuum – Antico Misticismo (Debemur Morti – 2006)

Yet another band who are no longer with us, Tenebrae in Perpetuum specialised in a particularly brittle, shrill form of frozen melodic black metal – made particularly surprising by the fact that they were actually Italian! Mainman Atratus’ guitar sound is one of the most distinctive you’ll hear – a treble-heavy, reverb soaked saw that nonetheless manages to convey the band’s excellently-developed sense of melody and song structure. All three of their full-length releases are worth tracking down so consistent is their quality but Antico Misticismo probably edges it thanks to a couple of genuinely spine-tingling moments.

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Obsidian Tongue – A Nest of Ravens in the Throat of Time (Hypnotic Dirge – 2013)

The most recent release on this list and hopefully a band who won’t remain ‘hidden’ for too much longer, this US-based duo ply their trade with a particularly punishing brand of “Post” black metal. Building on the template laid down by the so-called ‘Cascadian’ sound (Agalloch, Wolves in the Throne Room et al), Brendan Hayter and Greg Murphy lay down a serious challenge on their sophomore effort here. Winding passaged of considered guitar, inventive percussion and a darker atmosphere than many of their peers render them a real one to watch. That they can pull it off live is just the icing on the cake.

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The Watcher was speaking to STEVE TOVEY