If you didn’t know that Philippe Tougas hails from Québec and is thus a Canadian, you would never have guessed it from listening to this release. What is presented here is pure Hellenistic Black Metal of the highest order. The influence of the Greek masters is unmistakable; names like Rotting Christ, Necromantia, Varathron, and Thou Art Lord echo through every note and riff. From the latter, there is even a true cover featured on this release, further underscoring the deep respect for the Greek legacy.
Not only the style but also the atmosphere breathes the spirit of the 1990s. Had someone told me that this album was released in 1994, I would have believed it without hesitation. Everything fits: the raw guitar tone, the reverberant production, the use of atmospheric synthesizers, and the powerful, at times almost incantatory vocals. There is an authentic rawness and unpolished energy that perfectly captures the era’s spirit while simultaneously evoking a strong sense of nostalgia.
Yet, this release is far from a mere imitation of the past. Tougas skillfully weaves subtle influences from other corners of the metal scene into his music. Elements of thrash, doom, and more traditional heavy metal creep in here and there, without ever diluting the core sound. These influences add an extra layer of dynamism and variation, keeping the album exciting and giving it that little bit of extra character. The thrash elements inject speed and aggression, while the doom elements sometimes lend a heavier, more oppressive atmosphere.
The result is an album that not only serves as a love letter to the Greek black metal scene of thirty years ago but also stands firmly on its own, thanks to the subtle modern nuances and its distinct identity.
Where in the opener “Dragonships on the Juurn” there’s a brief detour into the epic sound of old Bathory from the Hammerheart era — think of the typical Bathory intro style — the sails are quickly adjusted southward. With full force, one sets course for the sun-drenched waters of the Aegean Sea, where the music finds its true direction. Once anchored in these mythical regions, the album fully unleashes its fury with “Ten Thousand Spears Atop the Bleeding Mountains,”a track that sweeps the listener away in a relentless whirlwind of riffs, galloping drums, and combative vocals.
Yet the journey through this auditory world is not limited solely to raw speed and sheer power. Highlights such as “Sous l’ombre éternelle des vestiges d’Heghemnon” reveal that Tougas also masters the art of atmosphere to perfection. Here, melodies are draped over heavy, misty soundscapes, evoking a sense of melancholy and lost grandeur. The nearly nine-minute odyssey “Godsteel (Blood of the Third Son)” subsequently becomes an absolute pinnacle of the record: an epic, gradually-built composition in which enchanting passages, furious outbursts, and immersive melodies alternate in an almost cinematic arrangement. It is within this track that Tougas’ ability to interlace classic black metal themes with a deeper, narrative structure is fully realized.
As the pièce de résistance, Tougas presents a fiery cover of “The Era of Satan Rising,” originally hailing from Thou Art Lord’s legendary The Cult of the Horned One demo from 1993. Far from a simple exercise in imitation, this version exudes the same dark, occult atmosphere as the original, yet it is imbued with an extra layer of intensity and urgency that perfectly complements the rest of the album. It feels like a heartfelt tribute, not only to Thou Art Lord, but to the entire Greek black metal scene that has so deeply influenced this work.
In summary, Philippe Tougas delivers a masterpiece that not only revives the glory days of Hellenistic black metal but also stamps its own identity with small yet effective modern influences and a precise sense of composition. This is no mere nostalgia record; it is a work of love, craftsmanship, and pure dedication to a genre that continues to thrive in the right hands.
80/100
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