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Samael > Blood Ritual > Reviews
Samael - Blood Ritual

Primal - 80%

PhilosophicalFrog, January 27th, 2015

I'm not sure when brutality became synonymous with complexity in metal, but it is a mentality with which I never really agreed. When you say "brutal" people think of technicality, or of speed and precision. People think of Cryptopsy, or Gorguts, or of Cephalotripsy and the slamming ilk. But, I'm not sure I've ever really felt "brutality" from those that sound like that - efficiency, fear, monstrous, awesome, maybe - but not entirely brutality. These bands are like sniper rifles and assault rifles - maintained, cold in their precision, and take time to master and use properly. So, while they may be the deadliest tools, the word brutality doesn't immediately come to mind. When I think of brutality, I think of barbarous tools. Those that are always deceptively effective - simple in presentation and purpose, but efficient for killing: spikes, clubs, axes, saw teeth. Simple shapes meant to be used by anyone who can wield them and with the intent to inflict some damage. This is exactly the type of music Samael made in their early days.

With few synths, a small intro, and an incredible focus on guitars, it's a straight forward, gloomy, and meandering album. It's filled with "go nowhere" riffs, a shallow, hollow production, and very few tempo changes besides going from slow to slower to slightly less slow. Most of the songs riffs sound eerily similar, with more of a focus on atmosphere than actual song-writing - and the doom elements more or less consist of classic heavy metal riffs and drum fills, with little variation between one song or another. But once you can get past the monotony, the simplistic accents make themselves noticed and add a ton to the album, and actually force the listener to focus less of the parts and more on the whole.

"With the Gleam of the Torches" is a galloping, almost fun ride through the caverns, with twisting and turning riffs, drums alternating between standard blasts and rocking beats to hi-hat and cymbal accents - the whole thing is reminiscent of being taken away by some ancient crypt-keeper, explaining ancient secrets as his blue flame fills the catacombs with an otherworldy hue. The title track is crushing, starting with a classic guitar rip worthy of early Hellhammer (which, unsurprisingly is obviously the most influential band on Samael at the time) followed by a fury of blasting and power chords and accompanied howls. It moves effortlessly between the two tempos, creating a tense effect of ritual and sacrifice. The most famous after "After the Sepulcture" is brutality incarnate - a crushing, draining riff that moves like some titanic subterranean behemoth - with a serpentine riff and lead guitar that effortlessly shifts from one melody to another, never losing its poisonous effect, before exploding back into the main riff.

Most of the songs alternate between these formulas, slow and crushing, slight blasting variation and a really deep focus on keeping the listener guessing on what strange twists might be thrown at them later. "Bestial Devotion" has oddly placed major chords among the atonal sounds of the main riff, and a really odd amount of technicality for the album. The closer "...until The Chaos" is a downward spiral of a song with riffs that resemble early Candlemass, but with less melodic leads, and an utterly awesome bass-line that picks up just the right amount of time into the song. If you don't head bang during the last half of the song, you're not listening properly.

I can definitely see the complaints with this album - it is really slow, a lot of the songs sound almost identical upon first listen, the tone is really kinda of hollow and may be too mono for some and the drums are incredibly active considering how simplistic everything else is. Seriously, Xy has a fill every few seconds on some songs it seems - and this can break up a perfectly good headbanging moment. But, I do think that the rather informal and aggressive drumming makes this album more unique and ritualistic than others playing this style of black metal at the time. The focus on the rhythm and drums definitely makes is feel more sinister somehow, maybe it's the link between primal instinct and drumming, or maybe it's just a predecessor for his leadership later in the group. Either way, Blood Ritual should be a mandatory listen. In all its simple, direct brutality, it never manages to cease being an engrossing and deceptively demanding.

High elevation, low rituals - 87%

autothrall, June 3rd, 2014
Written based on this version: 1992, CD, Century Media Records

Blood Ritual was my first experience with Samael. It must have been around the time I was 18-19, and the black metal selection here was still fairly limited; beyond Bathory and Darkthrone there were only a handful of albums I owned in the style, and while I might have read a snippet or two from a zine about this Swiss band, I purchased the tape largely on the strength of Axel Hermann's cover artwork and the fact I was digging into those early Century Media releases/licenses with a passion. It was around the same time I was first checking out bands like Tiamat, Asphyx and Despair, but among all of those, I recall having the strongest reaction to this particular album, which in retrospect is a solid step above the debut Worship Him in every conceivable department with the exception of possibly 'cult importance'. Note that I'm not exempting myself from that consideration, since the personality of the debut easily precludes it from the near-mediocrity of its riffing, but Blood Ritual even gets that right.

This is probably the last of Samael's recordings to heavily feature the influence of their countrymen Celtic Frost/Hellhammer, contorted into an evil and grainy guitar tone that is immediately more appealing to me than the dryer, reverbed rhythm guitars on Worship Him. Construction of the chords and chugged mutes here is not only flavored with a mildly more unpredictable, vile sense of purpose which embraces a slightly more black/thrash balance than on the prior album, which was overtly a marriage of heavy/doom metal with the emergent black metal of Europe. Don't worry, there are still strong traces of that style here, on plodding tunes like "Macabre Operetta" which almost feel like outtakes from the debut, but even there the riffing, while predictable has a richer sense to it through the tone, and the slightly better bass lines support the guitars. Blood Ritual also maintains that steady, warlike pacing akin to Bathory and Barathrum, but tunes like "Beyond the Nothingness" and the title track definitely bring out a stronger presence of inspirations like Slayer and Obituary, with the rich palm muting, evil dynamics and potential to occasionally explode into a faster, pent up rage falling somewhere between the more plebeian Teutonic and Bay Area thrash 6-8 years prior. They don't stick or sink every riff on the thing, but the tunes are better balanced, more melodic and I certainly find it easier to recount them on an individual basis than the band's 80s-penned material.

One other area where the sophomore exceeds its forebear is in Xytras' growing abilities in sheer composition. Piano and ambient interludes abound here, offering deeper immersion into the nihilism and blasphemy which compels the lyrics. This is an important foreshadowing for most of the future albums in their catalog, specifically the next two after this, which for me represent the band' creative and qualitative summit. But due to the clear, superior production, the cleaner instruments really mesh well into the heavier pieces, which don't rely so much on atmosphere to squeeze by, but the richness and polish and warlike confidence of numbers like "With the Gleam of the Torches", "Beyond the Nothingness", or "After the Sepulture" which I'm led to believe is probably the most popular single tune from this disc. While I would define Blood Ritual as blackened, simplistic thrash with a lot of emphasis on the rhythm instruments and regal/infernal bombast, it also offers a slightly less bestial, messy and incendiary vision of the style than a lot of the other stuff which was coming out through labels like Osmose. This is a disc which almost always takes its time, allowing Vorphalack's hybrid of rasping and growling to offer more of a narrative context than raving lunacy.

Consistent enough that I find it somewhat difficult to choose favorites, this shares with the debut that sense of timelessness. It's quite rudimentary, fundamental, and I can't imagine it could benefit from having a more contemporary production upgrade. Ironically, a band that often reminds me of this period of Samael is Triptykon, who often writes what in this era feel like pretty bland riffs, steeped in this crushing, massive modern tone which explains about 90% of hype for it. Tom G. Warrior seems to have taken a page from the very band that emulated his own alma maters, but despite the lack of age and rust upon this thing, I'm not sure the riffs here would be quite so interesting had Blood Ritual come out in the 21st century. For its day, this was a rather unique recording...apart from the Greeks, and a few crude American acts, much of black metal was heading in a more accelerated and intricate direction. Samael shared some of the symphonic inspirations with several of the German and Scandinavian second wavers, but how they structured the riffs and grooves in their material was more distinctly linked to that lumbering low-fi thrash and speed metal of the 80s. Blood Ritual would soon be eclipsed by the excellence of the band's continued developments, but this still remains one of their finest albums, and easily the best looking.

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com

The Essence of Dark and Simplistic Mid-BM - 91%

Byrgan, November 19th, 2008

Samael would take on elements that work on a productive, yet simple, level for their second album and follow up to their debut Worship Him. Samael had a past influence from Hellhammer that would show throughout their fast and slow debut. Blood Ritual is a distancing from their faster sentiments, while demonstrating a slower paced attitude and a middle mentality.

The new sound Samael has is quite clear and shakes off the filth from the last. While the music here isn't going for a savage or shocking showcase. Rather, Samael plays with a simplistic emphasis on catchy riffs and a less over-bearing side. Their darker half is a powerful engagement with elements that are timed, and have a spacing that is appropriate to its own musical subtleties from the first note to the very last.

Tracks are often worked up, like the fifth song: which has a dark, natural and airy acoustic guitar with interknited background keyboards, and then the music picks up with electrified pumping guitars and a slow moving agenda. The playing style of the guitars is very similar to the last album: with compelling riffs that utilize minor changes to amplify, and an abundance of palm mutes during mid and slower sections to add mass; he still excludes solos as well. With an ample production, Vorphalack's vocals appear differently: separating and centering his voice to an easier to understand focus. He uses a raspified self-distortion with a lurking extension, along with a shifting tone on certain sections for emphasis. Taking his time to add nail-biting anxiety that will eventually be left to nubs. The drumming picks up the pieces of the tracks with a slightly effected drum set, although less than the last album, and with each drum being clearly audible. He uses galloping and also continuous double bass to give more auditory background when the guitars are using a basic rhythm.

Xytras duals as drummer and keyboardist. He structures the keyboards when the main music isn't playing. As in a few intros or a short piece at the beginning or at the end of a track. 'Total Consecration' is a case of using keyboards throughout a given song. Consecutive, building pianos are used with varied thematic sounds and layered, mysterious effects; at one point there is a distorted vocal section overtop breathing fetidly in short gasps about bits and pieces of an occult ritual about to go underway.

The title track 'Blood Ritual' and 'Macabre Operetta' are from an earlier demo fittingly called Macabre Operetta. The Blood Ritual song has faster moments like the original, but this time with an unified tightness that was missing on the demo version; this is the only song with faster drums and guitars together here on the album. Macabre Operetta adds an acoustic beginning and some keyboards at the beginning and ending that was different than the original. Both songs here have vocals that are refined and bring back re-animated life to these tracks that needed a cleaning up, since they had the right ideas in mind but the inability to fully carry them out back then.

Blood Ritual would be a more subtle approach to dark-themes and has a beneath-the-surface evil persona. It uses a slower and middle take on black metal, while mixing a few keyboard sections and concentrating on fundamental pumping metal with heavy toned riffs. There is also a captivating basicness with Samael's Blood Ritual that has a way with its audience: to listen to the full album in its entirety and hardly flinch at hitting the replay button.

Total Fucking Consecration - 97%

KK, June 26th, 2005

Though Samael like to think that their proper beginning was "Ceremony of Opposites", their best work actually came out earlier.

Blood Ritual is a criminally underrated, neglected, and overlooked album. That's alright though, because posers need not be exposed to the skull cleaving demolition that this album brings.

This album is slow, simple, and very effective at creating atmosphere. Vorph's vocals are outstanding-a tortured growl that fits the music perfectly. Also check out the pictures in the booklet if you can, Vorph, Xy, and Mas looked completely badass before decided to do the shaved head thing. I cannot find these pictures anywhere online, nor can I find anything pre-Ceremony of Opposites.

The album starts with epilogue, a short intro that is unnecessary because of the lengthy build up of the first real song, "Beyond the Nothingness". Simple riffage played in repetition should have your neck sore by the end of this song. It's a great opener and one of the better songs on the album.

"After the Sepulture" is the best song on the album and one of Samael's best of all time. It was redone shortly after Blood Ritual came out, but I think the original crushes the remake. Once again, slow, pounding riffage with a fucking EVIL atmosphere. Vorph really goes all out on this one, especially in the chorus. It doesn't speed up, and it doesn't have to, because it wrecks from start to finish.

The only time the disc speeds up is for the title track, "Blood Ritual". Great intro here, then leads into some nice semi-blastbeat action. Like After the Sepulture, the chorus here is the strongest, "Totallllll Consecraaaaation!". It's also placed perfectly in the album, after the slowest song, "Macabre Operetta" and before the intro "Since the Creation".

"With the Gleam of the Torches" is probably my second favorite track on the disc. The catchy intro leads into a nice headbanging riff, which slows down a bit. Like Blood Ritual, this song seems to build up and down in steps, riffs will escalate up and down a few frets before coming back to their original location, it's pretty cool.

"Total Consecration" is one of those songs that really showcases the talent of Samael. A piano piece, it really creates a depressing atmosphere, and Vorph's vocals overtop come across as quite sincere in their agony.

The last two songs, "Bestial Devotion", and "...Until the Chaos", and the third, "Poison Infiltration", are a little weaker than the other songs, but carry the atmosphere of the ALBUM. I capitalize that because all of the tracks really do flow together; it isn't a mix of songs put together and numbered. There is a certain completeness to Blood Ritual that makes everything on it a worthwhile listen.

I find this disc to be Samael's most "sincere". Almost nonexistent keyboards, a clear cut message, simple, ass kicking riffage, and a fuck off attitude. I really have no clue why it's ignored, and I'm not sure if they have played anything off it in the last decade.

A must have.

much better then worship him - 83%

BoomStick, June 19th, 2004

After being a little disappointed in the first samael album, “Worship Him,” I was not to sure what to expect from their album, “Blood Ritual.” I bought the CD with both Worship him and Blood Ritual on it; as it was re-released in 1994 with both albums on it. I listened to Worship him a few times and never heard anything that caught my attention. So, I was a little sceptical about Worship Him.

I was completely wrong…The album has a cleaner sound(less like grind) more catchy tunes in their riffs, and a much better overall beat. The vocals are similar with relatively common death/black metal lyrics. The songs however are far more amusing to listen too. Beginning riffs like in the song, “Beyond the Nothingness,” and, “After the Sepulture,” (which is done with a more modern sound, on later releases) are extremely catchy with good beats; as well the songs all have directions and end up going somewhere.

Songs like, “Total Devotion,” are slow and done with keyboards, the vocals do not at all suit the keyboard type of tune and I am more then annoyed every time I hear this song. With only a few letdowns on the album it does have its share of masterpieces. The best tracks on the album are: …Until the chaos, macabre operetta, After the Sepulture, and Beyond the nothingness. “Macabre Operetta,” starts of slow and has an extremely slow beat most of the way through, the song however develops nicely and has some very catchy riffs later on in it.

None of the songs on the album are very fast at all, the songs are almost all split up into 3 parts… the beginning that develops the tunes and delivers basic riffage…the Middle which is usually about 3/4 the way through the song which develops and fully extends the thundering riffs (My favourite section of any song)…and the end which has a bit of a combination between the two begging and middle sections. I believe that Metallica were the ones who came up with this idea, and Samael have portrayed it masterfully.

The best song on the album in probably, “After the Sepulture,” which has a noticeably intriguing drum beat, and the guitars follow an excellent basic tune. I also really like the vocals in the song, they seem to follow the tune very well. Overall this album is a great come back from Worship him.

Slower and more focused sophomore effort - 85%

natrix, May 12th, 2004

This is a very strong follow up to Worship Him, which introduced Samael as a unique black metal entity with a very intelligent approach to occult themes. What made Samael so different from most black metal bands is their usage of slower, heavy tempos ("Into The Pentagram" and the title track off of Worship Him come to mind). On here they've also incorporated a bit more atmosphere, which works extremely well.

Probably the biggest influence on these guys (at this point) was fellow Swiss band Celtic Frost. "Bestial Devotion" has the really crushing riffing that made Celtic Frost so popular, whereas on "Macabre Operetta" they use some acoustic guitar and a bass outro (sounds A LOT like Metallica's "Orion," but still really good), and a few piano/vocal pieces that work really well.

The pace is much slower from the debut, with the title track being the only really fast song (and weakest, in my opinion). They're really starting to use the bone-crushing heaviness to their advantage, with the super strong riffs of "After the Sepulture," for example, or the Slayer-esque opening riff to "Beyond the Nothingness." "With the Gleam of the Torches" is slightly more melodic, and faster than most of the material on here. The opening riff is totally killer, and the verses are different from anything else they've done.

Overall, this album sounds fucking dark and evil, despite the fact that there are some pianos and acoustic guitars floating around in there. It's like they took a clue from Candlemass, a slight bit of the experimentation of Celtic Frost's Into the Pandemonium, and mixed in vintage black metal, creating a brooding, evil masterpiece.

One of the coolest tracks on here is "Total Consecration," which is just Vorph screaming along to a piano (and a few orchestra things). Though it is melodic, it sounds desolate, and strangely fitting between two very heavy songs.

The drumming on here is pretty nice. Xytras throws in a good amount of fills to his very lively and powerful playing style. Nothing too fancy, but very effective. Guitar work is not fancy, but it does have a pretty thick sound, but not as muddy as Obituary, for example. The bass is pretty audiable, giving this a good punch. It was recorded in Woodhouse Studio with Waldemar Sorychta, so you pretty much know what to expect.

I can't say this is better than the first album, because sometimes I just wish they'd pick up the pace, or shorten the songs a little bit. This is a strange step for them to have taken, but it's still really good.