Emperor – Reverence EP
The infamous Thor is back with yet another Emperor review! These guys are probably my favorite black metal band and I noticed that this has not been reviewed yet, so I took it upon myself to do just that. As always, this band impresses me with great songwriting and musicianship. Now, onto to the three tracks.
The quality of this EP has certainly improved from their other two.
The album takes no time to soften you in; it immediately breaks into the brutal riffage and double bass drumming. An unearthly scream is let out and it’s really impressive, it goes on for quite some time. It’s one of the best screams I’ve heard this band record. Around one minute into the songs the keyboards come in with some slow haunting effects with insanely fast blast beats in the back. All drummers should check out some Emperor, you will most definitely be impressed. This part continues for quite sometime until we reach a less heavy part that’s new and certainly a fun listen. The music is rather melodic with another great scream shrieked. There is also a really cool but brief guitar solo in this song. This song is definitely a must listen for any Emperor fan or a fan of black metal, for that matter.
After having your ass kicked by the last song, we reach the next song which is called In Longing Spirit. This track is slower than the last, and the verse is just vocals, keyboards and drums. The chorus isn’t really anything special; it’s nothing you probably haven’t heard from Emperor already. Later on in this track we come upon a faster section with more double bass drumming and basic riffing. I wasn’t really impressed by this song, they could have done so much more with it but they didn’t. How disappointing.
After hearing this I hope that they will quickly recover and end the album with a bang. Well guess what? They certainly do. This song exceeds my expectations and is another incredible song by the band. This song is nothing but a four minute orchestrated track, but it sounds awesome and really brings out the symphonic black metal side of these guys. This track isn’t brutal at all, but I love listening to it. Definitely worth checking out for anyone who likes classical or is an Emperor fan.
This EP certainly has its ups and downs. The first and third tracks are great, but the third one I found to be just plain boring. As always, the band shows off their skill and still writes some catchy songs that are worth listening to time and time again. I enjoyed As the Shadows Rise more, but this certainly is worth listening to.
Final Rating: 3/5
