AGATHODAIMON - The Seven / Digipak CD

Rejoining forces after many years of silence, German dark metal frontrunners AGATHODAIMON set the stage for their long-awaited comeback – the bittersweet seventh studio album, The Seven, out March 18, 2022 via Napalm Records. Formed in 1995 and entering the scene with their debut, Blacken the Angel, in 1998, the five-piece has made an undisputable name for themselves ever since. Yet after six albums, many festival appearances and tours, bandleader Sathonys was temporarily forced to put AGATHODAIMON on hold in 2014 due to private circumstances. But the irrevocable fire of the band and their fans never went out, seeking a reawakening of this sonic, seething beast. Now, the gates of darkness have opened once again to reveal extreme soundscapes amid a captivating mélange of evil provoking, cutting dark metal and heroic symphonic black metal in the style of bands like Cradle of Filth and Carach Angren, but with a unique and very own multifaceted take.

AGATHODAIMON’s seventh strike maintains the old-school spirit of its predecessor In Darkness (2013), but can’t be pigeonholed due to its dynamic and widespread musical styles, evoking a gloomy atmosphere fueled by sharp growls, epic clear vocals and a gripping, exceptional sonic universe. Thematically, as hinted by the album’s title, the full-length is centered around the momentous and symbolically powerful number seven and the seven deadly sins - sloth, greed, lust, gluttony, pride, wrath, envy - on ten tracks total, all addressed with religious topics that contrast with human beings and its original nature. Diving into this exciting construct with opener “La Haine”, the track lures the listener into the freezing, dark world of AGATHODAIMON, produced by long-time companion Kristian “Kohle” Bonifer (Aborted, Powerwolf, Hämatom amongst others), by building up a dense wall of thunderous sound, accented by a multifaceted vocal interpretation. Songs like raging “Wolf Within” and haunting “In my Dreams” roam between dense soundscapes, crushing instrumentals and intense lyricism. “Kyrie / Gloria” on the other hand stomps more towards heavy doom metal, calling for a black mass with creeping darkness and desperate screams turning into harsh black metal parts, all topped by the guest appearance of Benighted frontman Julien Truchan. Amid the tracklisting there's another special treat for fans lurking with epochal orchestration that paves the war for the remarkable performance of AGATHODAIMON’s former vocalist, Romanian Vlad Dracul, on “Mother of all Gods”. It’s not only this very first collaboration since 1999, but The Seven as a whole, that showcases that AGATHODAIMON absolutely acing the balancing act of incorporating their past into a bright and exciting future.

Tracklist

1. La Haine
2. Ain't Death Grand
3. Wolf Within
4. Ghosts of Greed
5. Mother of all Gods
6. Estrangement
7. In my Dreams (Part 1 - Prelude)
8. In my Dreams (Part 2 - In Bitterness)
9. Kyrie / Gloria
10. The Divine