Lord Belial - 'The Black Curse'

Swedish black metallers Lord Belial continue to evolve with each album, slowly branching from core black metal doctrines into a more progressive darkness.

The reaching effect of Emperor, Burzum, Dark Funeral and Darkthrone has inspired an entirely new generation of black metal practitioners, and as the genre continues to push its limits (and one-time limitations), Swedish mainstays Lord Belial continue to grind as effectively as they ever have.

Certainly Lord Belial’s longtime presence cannot be understated in the upswing of black metal’s popularity. One of the reasons is their creativity and willingness to texture their vengeful and brash blitz attacks. One listen to “Inexorable Retribution” or “Devilish Enlightenment” from their latest album The Black Curse indicates how far Lord Belial has ventured from 1995’s Kiss the Goat.

American black metal bands such as Nachtmystium and Wolves in the Throne Room and Scandinavian traditionalists Enslaved and Dimmu Borgir have pushed black metal far beyond anyone possibly could’ve envisioned it going. In response, Lord Belial has followed suit on recent albums such as Revelation and Nocturnal Beast, while their latest offering The Black Curse merges older principles with newer, evidenced by the cryptic and echoing “Antichrist Reborn,” which encapsulates a harrowing alpha chorus into its winding and nearly celebratory melody encompass.

While the production of The Black Curse extracts the massive strumming, articulate weaving and vigilant soloing from Thomas Backelin and Niclas Pepa Andersson’s guitars, the drumming of Micke Backelin is downplayed (as frequently happens on black metal albums) to the point of near absenteeism. Nonetheless, The Black Curse is a tormented and frequently turgid endeavor that will easily satisfy their fans.