I believe enough time has passed that a large chunk of Mayhem’s fanbase discovered the band through their modern albums rather than works like Deathcrush or De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas. I got into Mayhem in my mid-teens, back when Ordo Ad Chao came out. Not long after that I bought Chimera, and I don’t think I listened to their debut full length until several years after. My Mayhem journey is not exactly traditional, but then again, the same goes for Mayhem’s career.
Fact is that, for the longest time, no Mayhem album was alike, which is a mindblowing achievement when you really think about the four decades that passed since Mayhem’s formation. Sadly, this puts Mayhem in a very awkward position unlike any other veteran black metal band. Namely, that no matter how a new album turns out, Mayhem will alienate either the purist fanbase (with some of them somehow still thinking that Dead was their best vocalist *shrugs*) or the fans of experimental Mayhem who demand a continuous push for experimental extremity, while seemingly being incapable of enjoying proper black metal unless it has a particular gimmick.
Funnily enough, Liturgy Of Death seems to piss off both groups. I think that’s great for us who belong in the indecisive and easy-to-please camp; it also seems to be great for the band itself. As I read the information and the band’s thoughts that came with the promo, it became clear to me that Mayhem hasn’t felt like a truly solid entity in a very long time. However, now that it has been almost 15 years since Teloch and Ghul joined Mayhem, the band is as stable as ever, which I can attest to at least when it comes to their live performances. As I previously mentioned in my long-ass introduction, no Mayhem album was alike... Until Liturgy Of Death showed up.
Mayhem’s 7th full length is a straight-up continuation of Daemon*** with some minor tweaks. I’m aware that I was fairly positive in my previous review, but sadly that album has not aged too well to these ears. Still, I feel at least content to share with you that the tweaks that Mayhem has put on Liturgy Of Death make it a better album than its predecessor.
Hellhammer displays a far more varied performance this time around; sections like “Funeral Of Existence” after the 0:50 mark are very tasteful. The hellish beats are combined with the sinister tone of Necrobutcher’s basslines to make a solid rhythm section. I’m on my third Mayhem review now and I’ve grown tired of finding new ways to explain why Attila is a brilliant madman, so I’ll just say his infernal vocalisations still convincingly haunt me and leave it at that. The twin guitar assault by Teloch and Ghul is very convincing with their display of nasty riffs, and the band does differ a bit from the constant blasting by adding some serious groove combined with catchy guitar leads like on “Weep For Nothing” and “Realm Of Endless Misery”. Even when Mayhem decides to blast away, there are still moments like on “Propitious Death” that show how Mayhem still does it better than many others.
I suppose I’m conflicted and somewhat frustrated with Liturgy Of Death due to its untapped potential. Mayhem are still a band capable of unique greatness. This line-up is after all responsible for Esoteric Warfare, a proper highlight in their long journey. However, the ghostly guest chants of Garm on “Ephemeral Eternity” and basically the entirety of “The Sentence Of Absolution” and its deadly, ceremonial atmosphere prove that Mayhem are far from gone nor irrelevant in the modern black metal scene.
*** = Some would argue that Daemon was a follow-up to De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, but these people are wrong, weird, and you shouldn’t hang out with them.
