Style: Black metal with some thrash influence
Primary Emotions/Themes: Mythology
Thoughts: It's pretty hard to surprise me in music anymore, but the first time I put this album on I was in for one. I was expecting the album to start with the 11 minute epic Apzu, but instead was greeted by a three minute instrumental before the epic track came on. This was the first of a few surprises in for me as this was not The Sun of Tiphareth that I knew, but a reordering of the tacks that Osmose put out a few years ago.
The music on Tiphareth is quite a bit different than the debut, featuring longer and more intricate songs. The style has shifted from a death metal to black metal, though this is not typical blast beat driven style of the genre. These songs weave in and out of different tempos and vocal stylings, have a slight thrash edge to them and change multiple times during their play time. None more so than the aforementioned epic Apzu.
Apzu is an incredibly strong opener that features many passages. Some slower and more atmospheric such as the acoustic break with female vocals about 3 minutes in. Others feel more like a militaristic march, such as the epic and staccato riff around the 7-8 minute mark. Yet another section is high tempo and features aggressive blast beats and vocals from Proscriptor. The song closes out with a galloping section that reminds me of waves crashing into the side of a boat with their ebb and flow. The song is a true epic and one of the best that the band has created.
Each of the seven songs on Tiphareth are unique, but unlike V.I.T.R.I.O.L. there is a consistent style emerging here. One that would become uniquely Absu as it was refined in the following albums. As for the rearrangement of the tracks, I think I prefer the original except for one thing.
This version of the album closes the album off with Never Blow Out the Eastern Candle. Normally this song is only found on In the Eyes of Ioldanach EP. This is not only a strong closing track, it's one of the best songs that Absu composed. This addition alone makes me consider holding the rearrangement above the original, but it just sounds too off to me and my expectations to crown this version as the victor. Either way, The Sun of Tiphareth is an excellent entry into American black metal.
Written September 29th 2023
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