It’s thanks to writing reviews that I know about Hegerøth, and I have to say that from what I’ve heard so far, they are incapable of a bad album. This is a black metal band with control over its music, structures that capture attention and all the fire and malevolence that you could hope for. Something else I like about this band is that they don’t release grandiose accompanying statements and long stories with links to obscure historical events. They just let the music speak for itself. It’s 10 years since I heard the band’s demo, since when three fine albums have come along and now we have the fourth in “Sacra Doctrina”.
The end of the world is nigh, or so it seems from the razor-blade opening of “In Torment – part 1”. Vocalist Edward preaches at us, all sorts of nastiness erupts around him. Stylistically, which is an odd word to use about black metal, I think of old school bands like Gehenna and Limbionic Art. Two words come to mind from the atmosphere: contempt and fear. “Out of Habit” is a continuation the slaughter, but now Hegerøth are moving at pace, wrapping us up the swirling wind whipped up by the withering guitar riff. The drummer joins in the deadly fun by rattling off a rapid-fire death march. On it trudges mechanically. The track closes with an anarchic instrumental section signalling extreme chaos. It is the prelude to the dark menace of “With Adoration”. Of all the tracks, the lyrics are the most intriguing. I’m guessing that the clue lies in the final line: “Every crime will remain a hidden secret”. Having built up the adoration of the superhuman lord, it’s about blind devotion, domination and in spite of appearances, betrayal and corruption. That’s how it seems, or at least that’s my cynical interpretation. Musically the guitar flails wildly as the dark juggernaut batters its way forward. The pomposity of it strangely attracts in a head-bowing, sucking-you-in kind of way. Momentarily we plunge into the abyss for morbid reflection before returning to the grisly world for the continuation.
And on we march into “In Torment – part 2”. Three minutes in we are woken from our hypnotic battering by a violent explosion. Not only do sparks fly, but in my mind at least buildings collapse, rooves are blown off and there is a nuclear explosion – wow. If we thought things were bad, they’re hopeless now. The lyrics speak of rusty chalices and blood-soaked lawns. Rasping vocalist continues his miserable tale, combining with the solid firepower of the instrumentalists on “From Nothingness”. “In Torment – part 3” is black metal of the dirtiest variety. This is music without mercy. A haunting voice in the background as if telling us we’re dead. But it’s fleeting and for this reason worrying, and Hegerøth’s job is to finish us off by attacking us with its instrumental weaponry. So, they continue to do that, leading to the maze of extremity that is “With Devotion”. It takes through the mill of extremity and is probably the most multi-faceted track on this album, meaning that Hegerøth lead us from one scene of extreme torture and suffering to the next through a series of inventive tableaux. That could be the end, but “In Torment – part 1” is reprised, but this time the narration is in the band’s native Polish. This seemed to be strange on the face of it, if understandable from the perspective of Hegerøth’s audiences, but it works in another way. Instead of just catching me cold and introducing me to the scene of horror as “In Torment – part 1” did first time round, it now seems sharper. Indeed, not only is “In Torment – part 1” an accomplished and stirring statement of war, it is out and out anthemic. I listened to it, and went back to play it again. That’s how good it is. After listening to this, I need to wind down or relax by tearing up raw meat or something. As an album, “Sacra Doctrina” is so good that the first time I put it on to play, I almost missed my stop at Doncaster because I was so absorbed in it.
As Hegerøth albums go, I’d say this is the least subtle. Always extreme, “Sacra Doctrina” is about power and authority. The instrumentals, supported by the vicious vocals, are supremely executed. The musicianship is tight and dexterous. It’s fluid. We’re on the march and constantly under attack. Every ounce of nastiness is extracted. Yep, it’s another absorbing and full-on piece of work by this fine band from Poland.
(9/10 Andrew Doherty)
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