Septicflesh - Codex Omega - review
Septicflesh - Codex Omega - review
Tracklist
Disc I01. Dante's Inferno
02. 3rd Testament (Codex Omega)
03. Portrait Of A Headless Man
04. Martyr
05. Enemy Of Truth
06. Dark Art
07. Our Church, Below The Sea
08. Faceless Queen
09. The Gospels Of Fear
10. Trinity
Disc II [Deluxe Edition]
01. Martyr Of Truth
02. Dark Testament
03. Portrait Of A Headless Man [Orchestral Version]
A review by
nikarg October 01, 2017
The collaboration with the Filmharmonic Orchestra of Prague is present again in Codex Omega and the result is a grandiose and dramatic atmosphere, bestowing on us the musical equivalent of whole cities being razed to the ground and civilizations collapsing like a pack of cards. This is achieved by a constant and recurrent cycle of the triptych: build-up, climax, release. The instrumentation is brilliant as always and the band's form is at its peak.
The album obliterates everything in its path through the first half, which features some of the best moments Septicflesh have ever produced, culminating in one of the most epic and intense tracks of their career, "Enemy Of Truth". This song is an astonishing amalgam of inspired symphonies and hellish metal and the soprano choir is sure to raise the hairs in the back of your neck. Seth Siro Anton's infernal growls combined with Sotiris's demonic clean vocals in "Dark Art" offer another gothic highlight and the soundtrack for the apocalypse continues with "Faceless Queen".
Sadly, there is a feeling of déjà-vu or, better phrased, déjà-écouté, that frequently appears in the album. "Portrait Of A Headless Man" starts by repeating the line "In a world controlled by fire" in the same way James Hetfield sings twice "And the road becomes my bride" in "Wherever I May Roam". The ghost of Metallica emerges in "Martyr" too, when, halfway into the song, the riff of "Moth Into Flame" can be clearly recognized (and it is not very original anyway). However, the most disturbing thing about "Martyr" is that it is using the same riff as "Anubis" from Communion and this is not the only unsubtle rehashing occurrence throughout Codex Omega.
To a certain extent, Septicflesh seem to be at the same crossroads as their fellow countrymen, Rotting Christ. They have honed their craft to perfection and set the bar so high that they have ended up with a formula of cloning themselves, thus not doing full justice to their undoubtedly immense musical abilities.
Fans of the last decade's Septicflesh will be pleased nonetheless, because Codex Omega is a thundering album with many awe-provoking moments and a formidable production that allows room for all instruments to shine (and there's plenty of them). It demonstrates great balance between orchestra and metal and resembles The Great Mass as far as songwriting quality is concerned. However, being the fourth consecutive release of the band in this style, it lacks the element of surprise and innovation that characterized The Great Mass and it cannot of course come close to the apotheosis of Communion. On the other hand, it is remarkably better than its predecessor, Titan, and miles ahead of most symphonic death metal albums.
"One more empty frame ready for display
On a gallery of headless portraits..."
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 8 |
| Originality: | 7 |
| Production: | 9 |
Comments
| garmling
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Posts: 249  |
Posts: 249 Written by [user id=111071] on 01.10.2017 at 10:33 Now that may explain some things about my (unexpected to me) 9/10 for this album 
---- Life is all the pain we endeavour.
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Posts: 1208
Even though I agree that some few parts can remind of other songs I could put names on them, for instance that bass line in Martyr as you mentioned it. I don't see the common point with Anubis, had a quick listen and both songs sound so different to me. What I like most with Codex Omega is that the symphony has been a bit tuned down compared to Titan, hence sounding closer to The Great Mass, my all time favourite album by Septicflesh.
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Posts: 8285 Written by [user id=111071] on 01.10.2017 at 10:33 I love it too, but I can only give a 10 to Communion.
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Posts: 8285 Written by s_t_s on 02.10.2017 at 13:56 Try 0:44 from Martyr and 1:04 from Anubis. And it is not used only once in each song. I recognized it immediately, because Anubis is my all time favourite from Septicflesh and has been the ringtone on my mobile phone for years so I've heard it quite a bit 
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Posts: 1208
Agreed but it won't spoil the qualities of Martyr, one of my fave songs from Codex Omega. I guess that at some point each band goes repeating be it wanted or not  Who said that "Skyline" by Omnium Gatherum sounded a lot like "Only For The Weak" by In Flames ? Now to be honest, even when comparing both songs I can hardly hear how they are similar to each other, call it fan blindness ? :p
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Posts: 287 Written by nikarg on 03.10.2017 at 10:55 The are very similar riffs indeed, but they are not the same. I kind of see it as though the band was revisiting old riffs and seeing how they could improve it or just make it sound fresh. Good review though.
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