Search - Emperor :: Prometheus: Discipline of Fire & Demise

A landmark release. One of my 5 favorite metal albums

General Zombie | the West | 02/22/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Opinions on this album seem to be somewhat divided, which comes as no surprise I suppose, as it isn't at all similar to Anthems or Dusk. Personally, I stand in the minority and consider this to be a far greater achievement than thoes 2 albums.(great as they are.)This is the most dense metal album I've ever heard.The first time you listen to it you will probably not remember too much of it. Anyone who is unwilling to listen to this album carefully and repeatedly might as well not bother, as they are unlikely to get too much out of it. Personally, I don't think I fully appreciated it until about my 20th listen. Tempo changes are constant, with some truly ferocious and dense drumming from Trym. There is a near perpetual weaving of multiple guitar parts varying between lead-rhythm interplay, harmonies and competing leads in essentially every song. Fortunately, the guitar is work both tasteful and virtuosic, and is never emotionless or aimless. In fact, despite the abundance of leads, there aren't really any conventional solos to be found here. It all flows beautifully. All this is topped combined with heavy, though never cheesy, synth work, most commonly strings with some piano and harpsichord. This has by far the best synth work on any metal album I've heard.(which admitedly, isn't much of a prize.) I tend not to be too huge a fan of a lot of black metal vocalist, who frequently sound a bit goofy. This album is an exception. Ihsahn's shriek-growling is always filled with genuine emotion, and he never goes overboard. The clean vox are nice too. He obviously hasn't got the greatest voice your gonna here, but he generally rights good melodies to go along with. (which is what really matters.) It is initially a rather combative and harsh listen, with many parts which are intentionally discordant and actively anti-melodic to go along with the straight metal bludgeoning and melodicism which is found elsewhere. It is in this balance that it finds it strength. The contrast makes each section that much more powerful, and Ihsahn knows just when to change from one tone to another. On top of this, Emperor manages make the songs have varying and distinctive tones.(Unlike some more progressively oriented bands, which have each song have many different sounding parts, but seem to have the same parts in about the same ratio in every song, which makes it repetitive in spite of the many changes.) Depraved is especially harsh and violent, The Prophet more melodic and immediately memorable, Empty combines blistering speed with some powerful melodicism and The Eruption is kinda of mixture of all three etc. It's hard to pick out standout tracks as they are all outstanding, but The Eruption, The Prophet, Grey and In the Wordless Chamber are all especially spectacular. This is a concept album, and I don't fully understand what it's about so I won't go into it much, though I will say that it boasts unusually intelligent and compelling lyrics, which avoid tediously blunt religious bashing and ridiculous frozen/pagan/winter/forest/wolf garbage. Lyrics are of little concern to me, and I love many albums with the aforementioned lyrical themes(by this band, in particular) but it's always nice to see something different.The only real notable weakness here is that the closing track, Thorns On My Grave, is the weakest.(though it is still good.) It's always best to go out on a high note, especially when it's a concept album.Anyone who enjoys dense, progressive heavy metal needs to check this out. Even if you aren't a fan of black metal you need to hear.(Frankly, most traits which nonfans dislike in black metal aren't even found here.) This is truly a unique and powerful work."

A non-black metal point of view

hail satan | Massachusetts | 05/27/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I am not a fan of old black metal, where using a keyboard is grounds for getting a knife to the face. I enjoy any music that shows originality, intellegence, emotion, and most importantly, progression. Bands like Emperor, Dissection, Opeth, At the Gates, In Flames, etc. create this kind of music, and also happen to fall into the "extreme" metal category. I dont care if "Prometheus" is black metal or not. It is not meant to be understood or accepted by the masses, and you, reading this probably will not like it. You are one of two kinds of people: an ignorant black metal purist, who only listens to "br00tal" music for the image, that sets them apart from a world that regected them. Or someone who has not been exposed to enough heavy music to see past the "scary" or "mean" vocals. dont worry, there is hope. For the select few, who are like me, you are looking for music that makes you proud to be part of the human race. Music that replenishes the hope that this whole world hasnt completely turned too comercialized. If you are open-minded, and hungry for music which holds an intense artistic value, then please, buy this album. and if you ever see a introverted kid in a darkthrone t-shirt, bitching about how much new emperor sucks, do what Faust would do. then throw his mangled carcass in a church and burn him."

The soul is not silent, but wordless.

E. Halvorsen | Norway | 03/16/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There are some records that remain pillars & reference-point for other bands to follow. I can mention Metallica's "master of puppets" of trash-metal. Iron Maidens "The number of the beast" of classic heavy metal. Emperor is supposed to be the master of the black metal sub-genre, but their previous records, although championed as great works of art, was not quite up in the league of grand all time metal-pillars. Their first album "In the nightside eclipse" is mindblowing in every way, but it is too haunting and bleak even for the metal community to absorb, nor was the production up to standard.Their second album "Anthems to the welkin at dusk" had better production, and although it is even more ferocious and fast- paced than its predecessor it still comes across as more digestable for non-black metal fans. The problem with that record was that it alienated purist black metal fans with its expanded emphasis on classical atmosphere & composition.Now I'm supposed to say that this one has it all, and in one way I do. This is possibly the pillar they've long sought to create, however it is no longer of black metal. It's a pillar of something else, something of its own.Compared to "In the nightside eclipse" this one lacks the obvious & accessible melodic majesty. It has the same spatious feel though. Compared to "Anthems to the welkin at dusk" it lacks the continiuous symphonic layer that intermesh the ferocious metal drive. The wall of sound approach is traded in for a more spatious feel. Compared to both of the above, this one has a stronger influence of trash-metal (though still only periodically). It is more progressive, with overwhelmingly complex compositions. It has the best production of any Emperor album. Moreover. It is an incredibly coherent work, both musically and lyrically. There's more normal singing than ever before, and the individual achievements of every band-member is at its peak. There's no filler.The downpart is that all of this makes the album very little accessible. This is not a commercially intended work though. It's ment as art, and as nothing else. It may pass over the heads of most metal fans, but those who are willing to give time and attention to explore a work of art are likely to find that this is a pillar. A renewal of metal, no less."