Time Shall Tell

"Time Shall Tell" is the ultimate expression of Therion's death metal relevance. This recording is as brutal, sinister and abstract as anything from the early Swedish death metal scene. While their Stockholm contemporaries were busy pounding out punk-based riffs, Therion sounded like they were orbiting the gravitational field of a supernatural vortex. This EP (or third demo, as Christofer Johnsson prefers to describe it) is tighter, more technical and explosive than anything from the band’s first two demos. Could this have been Therion's response to "Altars of Madness"? (released a couple of months before Therion entered the recording studio). It seems so. The band’s Hellhammer/Celtic Frost influences have been over-matched by their Possessed and Morbid Angel influences, to great effect.

This was the band's first experience in the legendary Studio Sunlight. “Time Shall Tell” was recorded in December 1989, almost exactly the same time as "Left Hand Path". Therion were never derivative of Nihilist/Entombed. They were probably the first band to bring this brand of supernatural, contorted death metal into Sunlight. The best parallel is with Grotesque, who recorded (part of) their "Incantation" EP in the same studio a few months later. Both bands had an evil, twisted sound with lots of tempo changes and some keyboards. Therion never sounded as wild or extreme as Grotesque, but they were heavier and more disciplined. Both EPs feel like they’re tapping into an alternative vision of early Scandinavian death metal. A year later, the likes of Darkthrone and At the Gates would enter the same studio and follow their footsteps.

All four songs here would later appear on "Of Darkness...." (the band’s debut album). This EP is still the best way to hear them. These four songs are the most evolved, complex compositions the band had made until that point. They are presented here in one package, with a grittier production than that on the album. In fact, these recordings of the title track and "Dark Eternity" were re-used on the album. My assumption is that Tomas Skosgberg later remixed them to align with his "Of Darkness...." production. If not, then perhaps he just altered the speed to ‘fit’. In any case, they sound better, noisier and more abrasive in their original form. The other two songs ("Asphyxiate with Fear" and "A Suburb to Hell") tell a different story. These are different recordings to those on the album. They are slower and less hurried. The riffs hit harder. The guitars have more bite. The drums are louder. Skogsberg got it right on his first attempt.

The great thing about music like this is its unpredictability. Listening to the EP is a singular experience (unlike the patchiness of "Of Darkness...."). It flows off the back of odd, jaunty drumming and tempo shifts, from blasting to slower chugs. "Asphyxiate With Fear" is the best example. The opening minute of this song is a precursor to the doomy complexity that At the Gates created on “Gardens of Grief”. Death metal as disorientating and dark as this is a rare beast. I feel that the art of this kind of death metal has been lost. More recent bands have slotted themselves into various niches, being fast, technical, brutal, or slow and lumbering. Rarely (if ever) do they express themselves in ways that resemble what Therion did here. "Time Shall Tell" is pure in freedom of expression, and thus stands the test of time.