Band:	Apep
Album:	Before Whom Evil Trembles
Style:	Death metal
Release date:	September 2024
A review by:	F3ynman

01. Enslaving the Putrefied Remnants of the Deceased
02. The Pillars of Betrayal
03. Tombs of Eternity
04. Wanderers in the Waste
05. Before Whom Evil Trembles (Goddess of Carnage)
06. The Breath of Kheti
07. Swallowed by Silent Sands

Dissection have Thulcandra, Vektor have Terminalist,... and now Nile have Apep.

From that introduction, you probably can already guess what Apep sound like. Delivering ancient Egyptian-themed technical death metal, German band Apep are clear worshippers of the almighty American Nile. In terms of originality points, Apep get a score of zero. However, this shouldn't make you entirely write them off. While the creators of a unique approach should certainly be held in higher regard than those that simply replicate an established sound, there's also more to the enjoyment of music than just determining who kicked off what style when. There also should be recognition for bands that play music so well that their performance outshines their sense of innovation.

Just as with Thulcandra and Terminalist, Apep play the specific style of their idols incredibly well, keeping the iconic sound alive with groovy guitar riffs, fast-paced percussion, eerily high-pitched tremolo-work, and rumbling chthonic growls. Together with lyrical themes of wrathful gods, sand-choked ruins, and Lovecraftian horrors, Apep’s musicianship harkens back to the epic anthems of In Their Darkened Shrines and Annihilation Of The Wicked.

Where Before Whom Evil Trembles lacks in originality, it excels in performance, production, and songwriting. Addictive energy pervades throughout the entire album, linking every song into a chain of extremely enjoyable death metal. Ever since I got early access to this album, I've actually been procrastinating to write this review. I've been too busy playing Before Whom Evil Trembles on repeat, immersed within the enveloping musical atmosphere that is visually depicted on the cover art—a work of the legendary death metal artist Paolo Girardi. Whether it's the crushingly heavy tunes of the title track or the melodic, oriental interlude of “Wanderers Of The Waste”, each song is a valuable piece within the well-structured album, culminating in the 10-minute-long, epic conclusion “Swallowed By Silent Sands”.

Just in case you couldn't get enough Egyptian action with Nile’s The Underworld Awaits Us All, Apep offer you just three weeks later a superb exhibition of finest death metal that harkens back to Nile’s glory days. Before Whom Evil Trembles does not offer anything new for fans of Nile, and it will most likely be overshadowed by The Underworld Awaits Us All, but it's such a well-crafted, excellently executed example of Nile’s signature style that it would be folly not to give it a chance. If you're a fan of groovy, mesmerizing, oriental death metal fury, Apep have got everything you need.