Perdition Insanabilis

Having released one of the better extreme black/death albums of 2003 (Filth Catalyst) the French quartet known as Arkhon Infaustus return with their next installment of psychotic malevolence. Always the provocateurs, particularly with their previous album covers, AI have surprisingly gone with something a tad more ambiguous this time around, almost to the point of let down. Perhaps they felt it was time their music became the center of people’s attention rather than secondary images based on artwork. Not a bad move I say.

As a black/death release, last years ‘Filth Catalyst’ pretty much set the standard for the style. It was, in my opinion one of the more impressive extreme albums of that year. Certainly, the one major strength that AI possessed was the ability to construct truly dark confronting music. Like their contemporaries such as Anaal Nathrakkh and Angel Corpse before them, these guys portray a genuine evilness in their sound. Only the very good extreme bands are capable of achieving this.

I am happy to say that ‘Perdition Insanabilis’ maintains the standard set by FC. It’s not necessarily a major step up in musical ideas or advancement of the genre, but it most certainly encompasses all of the essential AI trademark elements. Previous AI releases have always been described as works of insane speed and furious blasting without regard for subtlety. I believe 2003’s ‘FC’ disc actually addressed some of those issues as the band became more conscious of providing thoughtful mid-tempo sections to provide contrast to their usual flat out metronomic pacing. If anything ‘Perdition…’ sees the band adopt this mind set even further. I’d even go as far as saying this is A.I’s most ‘controlled’ sounding disc ever.

In this respect, ‘Perdition…’ kind of reminds me of the developments Zyklon made with their mighty ‘Aeon’ disc. Like Zyklon, A.I have been careful to not to retreat from their staple sound – ‘Perdition…’ is still very much entrenched in a furious blast like nature. However, it is clear that ‘Perdition…’ also represents a band that is conscious of expanding their current style and as a result, they provide for a more multi-faceted approach rather than straight up blast beat devastation from start to finish. This disc therefore has a killer diverse nature and that essential ebb and flow to it. Personally, it is the slower, mid tempo moments of ‘Perdition…’ that I find most interesting. This is where their dark evil melodies really come to the fore.

Perhaps the most irksome element of the A.I sound is the twin-vocal approach that they apply to most tracks. I find D.Deviant’s ‘black’ vocals to be much more in tune with the style of music written here. Conversely, 666 Torturer’s ‘Death’ style is a little too generic in its deep ‘Incantation’ style growling. Having said that, A.I are one of the few bands who attempt this vocal approach – for the most part they get away with it, but like I say, personally I’d rather the ‘Black’ style to be more prevalent.

Superbly produced with a great drum mix at Sweden’s Berno studio (Vomitory, Amon Amarth, Deranged among others), ‘Perdition…’ is another fine example of how confronting good Blackened Death metal can sound. It is by no means anything genre defining, although I do believe Arkhon Infaustus have developed their own style. It may not be quite as hyper as ‘Filth Catalyst’ either; nevertheless with added emphasis providing variation, it is a worthy follow up and a fine addition to any to serious extreme metal CD collection.