Deceased may have their tongues firmly planted in their rotted cheeks (in Fearless Undead Machines), but Emperor are serious as an aneurysm. The most powerful surviving force in the Scandinavian black metal community (the ... more »one whose members have actually been arrested for burning churches and committing murder), in 1997 the band released its strongest, most pernicious album yet. Unlike its previous record, which stormed through like a lo-fi tornado, Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk is a multi-dimensional beast that drags the listener through varied metallic terrain, from speed-freak thrash to gothic doom. And even at its most aggressive, the record retains its meticulously layered structure. Evil awaits. --Jon Wiederhorn« less
Deceased may have their tongues firmly planted in their rotted cheeks (in Fearless Undead Machines), but Emperor are serious as an aneurysm. The most powerful surviving force in the Scandinavian black metal community (the one whose members have actually been arrested for burning churches and committing murder), in 1997 the band released its strongest, most pernicious album yet. Unlike its previous record, which stormed through like a lo-fi tornado, Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk is a multi-dimensional beast that drags the listener through varied metallic terrain, from speed-freak thrash to gothic doom. And even at its most aggressive, the record retains its meticulously layered structure. Evil awaits. --Jon Wiederhorn
Ilker Yucel | Annapolis, MD United States | 02/23/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Emperor were one of the few bands that dared to take the conventions of the Norwegian Black Metal scene they were a part of, and break past them to create a sound that was as violent and as majestic, but far superior in production and musicality. "Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk" took several listens for me to really appreciate it, and that's how I know a truly great album; repeated listens to discover the nuances that define the album's greatness.Starting slowly and coldly, the mostly clean "Al Svartr (The Oath)" immediately showed progression beyond the controlled chaos of the previous album before booming into a fanfare march that leads into "Ye Entrancemperium," a fast and violent song that echoes what the rest of the album has to offer. "Thus Spake the Nightspirit" is one of their (for lack of a better description) "most catchy" songs, with an outro that is perhaps one of their most memorable moments. "Ensorcelled By Khaos" is a great song with an beautiful slow mid-section that allows the listener to breathe for a moment after the hysteria from the previous tracks...but it doesn't let you breathe for long, for it builds back up again to an explosive end. "The Loss and Curse of Reverence" is definitely among Emperor's best compositions, full of tempo and rhythm changes, evil lyrics, and is perhaps the best example of classically-augmented black metal. "The Acclamation of Bonds" is another good song (there's a section in the middle of the song that sounds like the intro to "For Whom the Bell Tolls" by Metallica, but only briefly and it fits the song very well). "With Strength I Burn" is the second great epic of this album, showcasing Ihsahn's ever-improving clean/operatic vocals. The lyrics are probably the most viking-metal Emperor ever got, definitely showing the Bathory influence, but extending beyond Bathory's conventions. "The Wanderer" is an excellent closer for the album, much slower than the album has been up to that point, once again allowing the listener to breathe, but also instilling a sense of despair. The rerelease contains "In Longing Spirit" and "Opus A Satana" from the "Reverence" EP. "In Longing Spirit" is a slower song, and "Opus A Satana" is a symphonic keyboard rendition of "Inno A Satana," the ultimate proof of Emperor's musical excellence.This is a far superior album to "In the Nightside Eclipse," showing a great deal of improvement in both production (which still wasn't that great, but compared to the first album is much better), and musicianship. Every song could easily be translated into a symphony of Wagnerian pomposity and grandeur. It is a violent album, revelling in a whirlwind attack of guitars and blasting percussion (and Trym's performance on this album is easily one of the best drum performances of all time). The interplay between Ihsahn and Samoth, both as guitarists and as songwriters is at its finest. Alver's bass provides a nice accompaniment to give the album that extra low-end. "Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk" can definitely be counted as one of the best viking-metal/black metal albums of all time."
Majestic metallic art
Mike | Long Beach, CA | 06/24/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I have to admit, I really hated Emperor until about a year ago. I had been into metal for around 5 years at that point, and I honestly gave black metal a shot (Emperor being one such band), but I still found it unlistenable and dismissed it as mindless noise.Until one day, it just sounded GOOD. I can't describe how or when exactly it happened, but "Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk" was suddenly in my CD collection after hearing (and this time appreciating for the first time) "Thus Spake the Nightspirit." Emperor's songwriting ability is showcased to its pinnacle on this opus, with every song rampaging like a whirlwind or going at an average tempo of Mach 26. "The Loss and Curse of Reverence" is probably not only the best example of this, but my favorite song on the CD as well. They even shot a really killer video for it (and MTV played it once at 3 AM after Korn and Limp Bizkit. Just kidding. But the 3 AM part might be accurate if MTV had any balls.)Other standout tracks are "With Strength I Burn," "Ye Entrancemprium," (also featured on Century Media's "Identity IV" compliation, which I also highly recommend), and "Opus A Satana," a very pleasant classical/keyboard instrumental - a true black metal gem.If I'd have to pick a favorite black metal album, this would probably be it, right next to Sanctus's "Aeon Sky." If you're reading this review, you like metal, right? Well, stop reading my endless praise for Emperor and this masterpiece of metal and order it now! Even if you're not into black metal, just as I was, you'll eventually see the light. This band and album are simply superior works in the genre."
Hooray for Emperor!!!
Bender the Ender | 06/21/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I'd like to say first that this is the first black metal band I've ever listened to. And to be serious before I listened to it I thought all black metal sucked and all they talked about was satan and burning churchs and how cool it was to kill people... and satan. Obviously my opinion has changed. After listening to the song The loss and curse of reverence I realized that these guys sounded good... h*ll even better than good they sounded awesome! So after listening to that song and a few others (thanks to my girlfriend (I love her!)) I thought why not get a cd for myself? I went and got this cd (actually it was the cd with the 3 extra bonus songs) and I listened to it and thought to myself that I really liked this cd... I mean REALLY liked it. Most cds I get I have to warm up to before I start being obsessive with it and listen to it exclusively for the next 2 months.... not this one... And I've had it for 3 months so far... But thanks to Emperor I've opened up to the black metal genre...but on with this review. The first song is a great one,it starts out slow and pretty, and then gets creppy and faster paced, then it gets really cool sounding with all the instruments and what not. Then it leads into the next song PERFECTLY. Most of the cd is like that to... it leads into the next song perfectly and leaves no 2 minute break in the songs... as for production value... I cant really say its terrible... or even bad for that matter... Its not the best but what can you do? As for the lyrics... I'm not a big "memerize the lyrics and syllables and notes of all the songs" kinda guy... all I can say is that it sounds cool... and thats mostly what matters.... I mean you probably wouldn't want to listen to a terrible sounding band that had awesome lyrics... As for this cd though It is definantly one of my top 10 cds..."
Innovative, inspired and beautyful
E. Halvorsen | Norway | 03/31/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Every release from Emperor is so different it's an exercise in undue selectiveness to rank them. To have a favorite is something else. Many purist black metal fans see this album as the album that started the entire symphonic trend, a trend seen as to cause a degeneration of black metal.This album is still black metal to the bone though. It has the most immense (yes, immense is the perfect word) sound of any music I've ever heard. You're not given a breathing room. This is still complex music however, with intricate compositions and subtleties. Purist black metal fans react because there's a "symphonic layer" making up a "back-carpet" throughout the record. They see it as artsy pretentiousness incompatible with the evil, merciless black metal cause.Well, I don't like black metal in general. I like some Satyricon and Immortal if I'm in a very particular mood, but in general no. I do like Emperor. Please realise, purist black metal fan, what a dimishing breed you are, destined for eternal stagnation. Emperor is progression. Who wants evil? I like uncompromising and challengingly overwhelming art, I don't like evil.I agree that much of what comes out of the renewed, "symphonic" black metal stage is cheesy and uninspiringly unoriginal. This however is the pioneering band that inspired the change, they didn't follow through with it themselves. The fact is that Emperor is among the most skilled of all metal bands. Innovative, inspired and beautyful in its own uncompromising way."
Track Listings (8) - Disc #1
