REVIEW: Solar Deity - "In The Name of Satan"
Mumbai-based duo Solar Deity released their album “In The Name Of Satan” lengthening up to 17 and a half minutes with only 5 tracks. The band comprises Aditya Mehta on vocals, guitar and bass guitar and Yash Pathak on drums, both members being the founding members of the Indian death metal giants Exhumation. The band name is derived from the vocalist 'Aditya' which means “Sun God” in Sanskrit. One of the first of their kind in India, Solar Deity is a promising “Satanic True Black Metal” band. You can pretty much hope to come across loads of Satanic stuff in an album when the front man of the band is a LaVeyan Satanist.
When I first saw the album artwork, I didn’t know what to make out of it, but, luckily I had access to the lyrics of the songs and managed to figure out what the artwork was trying to depict. It portrays a group of priests traveling to a temple from their homes deep in the forest.
The album starts off with the very short instrumental intro song “An Everlasting Fire In Those Of Purest Flesh And Blood”. The vibe behind the tolling of bells signifies the calm before the storm for the carnage to follow!
Next in line are “Declaration Of Satanic Victory And Eternal Reign”, “Blasphemous Chanting On A Moonless Night” and “Ceremonial Feast At The Black Temple” which are the ultimate treat! I really fell for the chanting “Satan Lord” in “Declaration Of Satanic Victory And Eternal Reign”. The riffs in the songs are one which would make any black metal fan drool over the album. “Blasphemous Chanting On A Moonless Night” describes the journey of the priests from their homes to the black temple. “Ceremonial Feast At The Black Temple” shows the arrival and welcoming of Satan. The album ends with “Last Rays From A Dying Sun Cannot Penetrate The Impending Darkness” which again has the sound of bells.
When I said the band was “traditional black metal”, I MEANT IT!!! The album has raw and crunchy production adding to the coldness and fear induced by the album. Fuzzy guitars, minutely audible bass guitar and the ever-dominant drums show the band’s love for Burzum and Darkthrone. Yash Pathak is a beast on the drum-kit. Every hit on the cymbal, bass drum and the snare drum adds to the diabolic nature of the album. I was truly impressed by Aditya’s vocals. I never anticipated that Aditya, originally being a death metal growler could do vocals on a black metal album; but only to my shock, I was proved wrong. I really appreciate Aditya’s efforts put into the high-pitched, raspy shrills and suicidal screams.
The only negative aspects of the band were the minutely audible bass guitar (which seems to be a trend in black metal) and the lack of guitar solos; the entire album only has one solo in the song “Ceremonial Feast At The Black Temple”. I do not really like raw production, but I cannot imagine this album with clean production. I guess most people might sight the song names as a negative too only because of the lengthy titles.
The album has been recorded at Midicore Studios by Ayan De. The superb artwork and band logo has been designed by Aakash Dwivedi. On the whole, this is one very promising act and may also hopefully inspire many young kids to play this style of music. I am really looking forward to more releases by this band.
When I first saw the album artwork, I didn’t know what to make out of it, but, luckily I had access to the lyrics of the songs and managed to figure out what the artwork was trying to depict. It portrays a group of priests traveling to a temple from their homes deep in the forest.
The album starts off with the very short instrumental intro song “An Everlasting Fire In Those Of Purest Flesh And Blood”. The vibe behind the tolling of bells signifies the calm before the storm for the carnage to follow!
Next in line are “Declaration Of Satanic Victory And Eternal Reign”, “Blasphemous Chanting On A Moonless Night” and “Ceremonial Feast At The Black Temple” which are the ultimate treat! I really fell for the chanting “Satan Lord” in “Declaration Of Satanic Victory And Eternal Reign”. The riffs in the songs are one which would make any black metal fan drool over the album. “Blasphemous Chanting On A Moonless Night” describes the journey of the priests from their homes to the black temple. “Ceremonial Feast At The Black Temple” shows the arrival and welcoming of Satan. The album ends with “Last Rays From A Dying Sun Cannot Penetrate The Impending Darkness” which again has the sound of bells.
The only negative aspects of the band were the minutely audible bass guitar (which seems to be a trend in black metal) and the lack of guitar solos; the entire album only has one solo in the song “Ceremonial Feast At The Black Temple”. I do not really like raw production, but I cannot imagine this album with clean production. I guess most people might sight the song names as a negative too only because of the lengthy titles.
The album has been recorded at Midicore Studios by Ayan De. The superb artwork and band logo has been designed by Aakash Dwivedi. On the whole, this is one very promising act and may also hopefully inspire many young kids to play this style of music. I am really looking forward to more releases by this band.
Rating: 8.5/10
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Reviewed By,
Naman Lakhani
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