Opvs Contra Natvram

Album review

Despite a long career dedicated to the black death cause that began in 1991, it took time for the Polish band’s tenth album, The Satanist (2014), to be considered a must-have extreme metal album (a genre was born from this music, which sounded as extreme as it did deep, and possessed true melodic darkness). Its successor, I Loved You at Your Darkest (2018), presented a bold Behemoth eager to mark its return by making music that was both better orchestrated and better produced. This was done at the expense of losing some of their signature sound, which cut them off from a portion of their original fanbase, who accused them of betraying their origins… You can't please everyone. Nonetheless, despite this desire for greatness, the band (led by singer and guitarist Nergal) didn’t seem to express everything they wanted to say on this record.

Opvs Contra Natvram shares the same passion for excess as its predecessor, but this time, the band push further, determined to reach the goal they set themselves four years earlier. In terms of orchestration and set-up, this album delivers a finely-tuned sound with powerful production, making Behemoth's songs more accessible, even if that means occasionally over-diluting their content with invasive symphonic arrangements. However, this by no means renders the incredible compositional work unenjoyable, especially on tracks such as the imposing ‘The Deathless Sun’ and its stunning twirling guitar, or the brutal ‘Neo-Spartacvs’ that could be the best black death metal the band has produced so far. The same is true of the excellent ‘Once Upon A Pale Horse’, which proves that black metal and groove can come together in one song.

The path the band started walking with I Loved You at Your Darkest is still clearly marked out on Opvs Contra Natvram, though some will prefer the rougher side of the first albums. However, there’s very little chance that the band will return to their old sound after producing a work like this one. This evolution and experimentation goes to show how important it is to shake up your habits if you want to keep making progress. Their decision to keep moving onward makes Behemoth a natural leader of the black death scene. And this album was worth the risk. © Chief Brody/Qobuz