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Necronomicon > The Sacred Medicines > Reviews
Necronomicon - The Sacred Medicines

Catchy Canadeath - 88%

__Ziltoid__, December 27th, 2010

Welcome to Cana-death! Canada is home to some of the quirkiest of all metal bands, regardless of the subgenre in question. Hell, for the most part, Canadian metal slays American metal on the basis of quality alone, and Necronomicon’s 2003 album The Sacred Medicines is one of the best death metal albums to be released from this country.

The Sacred Medicines is an odd little piece of death metal in that it is very focused on catchy riffs, yet at the same time, this album primarily consists of intense moments. Either that, or fucking weird shit going on. Whatever it is, these catchy riffs are almost always present. Just check out my personal favorite track on here, ‘Through The Door Of Time.’ We’re treated to a delicious combination of blastbeating fun, and then some weird ass choir vocals replace them, all with the support of the main riff. “Weird ass choir vocals” may seem out of place on many death metal albums, but here, it is executed very nicely. After that, we get a nice little solo, but the rhythm section behind it is just orgasmic! The bass is just frolicking around, creating a sound that you just can’t help but smile at while listening to it. This creates a really nice contrast with the fast-paced death metal parts, overall lending itself quite well to establishing Necronomicon as a unique death metal band.

The riffs are definitely the most noticeable aspect of this album, purely because they’re so varied, yet almost always catchy as fuck. With one listen through this album alone, any experienced death metal fan can probably find riffs that sound like they come from a wide variety of different influences, such as Altars through Domination-era Morbid Angel, Immolation, and Dismember.

Still, I think the structure of the rhythm section during the solos is one of the things that really sets this album apart. That contrast I mentioned before completely defines the atmosphere of the music, transforming it from any ordinary catchy death metal album into something that seems like more of a journey than anything else. There is somewhat of a Native American theme interspersed throughout the album (a few interludes make this clear), and this theme sometimes pops up in the actual music as well (e.g., ‘The Sacred Medicines’), and when it does, the depth of the song really makes a lasting impression, at least to me. Musically, this is rather catchy death metal, but it also happens to be incredibly well-structured, and that structure is probably the most important part of the album for me. That structure includes the sequencing of the riffs, the rhythm sections during the solos, the order of it all, fucking everything! It all just clicks on this album.

Overall, The Sacred Medicines is an underrated gem. It has the diversity and structure that a death metal enthusiast such as myself enjoys seeing, while not letting the diversity dilute any of the core elements of the death metal sound that we all know and love. Filled to the brim with catchy riffs, fun rhythm sections, and a creepily awesome tribal motif, this is an album that made for the death metal fan who wants a bit of variation in his death metal diet. This may not be nearly as brutal as other Canadeath greats such as Cryptopsy, Gorguts, and Martyr, but The Sacred Medicines more than makes up for that with everything else that it does so fucking well.

Written for http://thenumberoftheblog.com/

unheralded canadian death metal - 95%

odradek, June 28th, 2008

I thought Necronomicon's first full length release, "Pharaoh of Gods", showed a flash of potential with the excellent track "Revelations", but the remainder of the album was nothing outstanding. Still, the promise of that one song was enough to motivate me to purchase the follow up album, "The Sacred Medicines". The band has taken a huge step forward with this release; it's absolutely full of the madly groovy midpaced riffing that made "Revelations" memorable.

The Egyptian themes from the previous album are gone, replaced by a tribal motif. Instrumental interludes feature what sounds like native American tribal chanting, and an indigenous influence can be found in the lyrics as well. As on the previous album, female voice is also used as an atmospheric background effect -- sounding notes but not singing lyrics.

Atmospheric embellishments aside, Necronomicon's pace and overall sound remind me a bit of the band Immolation. Lyrics are growled but understandable, while double-bass drumming and downtuned guitar dominate the sound.

A unique characteristic of Necronomicon's sound is that there is only one guitar; the guitar solos are backed only by bass and percussion. The lone guitar track lets Rob the Witch showcase all his talent with the instrument: the riffs have a great sense of rhythmic complexity, and the solos are creative and memorable.

The album opens with the brilliant track "Through the Door of Time"; just five seconds into the album the band have hit you with an incredible riff. Super tight and aggressive, alternating melodies on the low and high strings so rapidly you would swear there's more than one guitar at work. As the song unravels, the listener is treated to enraged vocals, a sequence of one catchy riff after another, and an engaging guitar solo. The momentum carries through the whole album. One after another, the tracks combine to send the listener on a ceaseless, furious ride, with the occasional instrumental section providing the a chance for the ears to rest while atmosphere builds for the next explosion of riffs.

No longer on a death metal label, I'm not sure Necronomicon have gotten the attention they deserve for this release. If you want to hear some great mid paced death metal laced with a bit of groove, seek this out.

Melodic Brutal Death Metal! - 92%

Theli, June 21st, 2006

Necronomicon is another death metal band from Canada's metal hotspot of Quebec, but unlike most of the other death metal flowing out of Quebec this isn't brutal just for the sake of being brutal. The Sacred Medicines has different moods and atmospheres depending on what suits the songs. The album has a lot of instrumental passages and weird atmospheric interludes, but for once these interludes don't interrupt the flow of the CD. The Sacred Medicines is a concept album (more or less) based on the native inhabitants of the North America (I think, I haven't really examined the lyrics fully, but they definitely have a dark and mystical feeling to them).

Necronomicon get a lot of comparisons to Nile I assume mostly because of their previous album Pharaoh Of The Gods and the way they fit intros, outros and interludes into their music, and while I feel their are similarites between the two, with The Sacred Medicines Necronomicon have mastered this style of atmospheric, melodic, and yet still brutal death metal.

Now down to the good part, the songs themselves! The album opens with an asskicker in Through The Door Of Time. Through the Door Of Time is actually my favourite from the album, but that doesn't mean that the others that followed aren't kickass. The song opens up with a short intro passage that leads into an almost black metal style riffing and awesome double-kick, but not quite blasting, drum beat. Later in the song they slow it down and have an almosy Sabbath like riff. My second favourite song on the album has to be Quetzalcoatl, which features some amazing riffing and a beautiful melodic section with female vocals, and no they don't sound lame, this isn't fucking Nightwish. The best thing about this album is that Necronomicom don't just write purely fast riffs or have purely blasting drums, there is times when you can hear Black Sabbath as one of their influences and others when you hear Morbid Angel as their prime influence. The solos on the album are quite varied, sometimes taking on a more eastern tone and at other times more shredding or chaotic. Rob's vocals fit perfectly with the music, they're gutteral and growled but also understandable perhaps most comparable to Amon Amarth's vocalist. Anyone who likes Nile, Morbid Angel, Amon Amarth or Augury could do worse than to check out this album!

Beauty Meets The Beast - 91%

ForIAmWicked, March 7th, 2005

Necronomicon’s latest effort scores big with me for its continued deliverance of both concentrated brutality and mind-blowing atmosphere. These guys really have talent coming out of all pores - which is why I find it so weird that they are a completely undiscovered band by most people I talk with. Expanding upon the themes that guitar lead and vocalist Rob “The Witch” pens, this album is an even more introspective look at nature and civilizations. While Pharoah of the Gods had intros incorporated into the beginning of songs, this cds incorporates whole ambient tracks. Some diehards might say that it detracts from the brutality of the album, but I think it only makes those parts more eloquent. From cd opener “Through The Door of Time”, this band will immediately assault your ears. Necronomicon employs an even deeper guitar crunch in this album, and I find that their riffs are more crisp and varied. It certainly seems that the time spent in the recording studio has been well worth it. Rick on drums and Fredrich on bass ensures that Rob’s single-guitar soloing never allows the music to feel weak or any less punishing. Necronomicon’s delivery is standard death metal fare, with much more thought going into the lyrical content and arrangements. It’s not sheer speed that will get you banging your head, but rather the supreme ability of Necronomicon to change gears just when you think you know what the song is all about.
Track highlights on this cd include track 1 (Through The Door Of Time), track 2 (Dark Wings of Deceptions), and track 8 (Quest For Vision), but I really think they are all part of a supreme effort by these Canadians. Do yourself a favor and pick up a cd that’s been blowing my speakers since 2003. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Also, check out Necronomicon’s Pharoah of the Gods cd. It’s Egyptian-themed, with female operatic vocals juxtaposing the harshness of Rob’s voice. Very cool contrast.