Listening Experience of the Month (March 2000) - Mephistopheles 'Landscape Symphonies'

This time around, unlike previous month, I did not have a clear choice of which album I would like to review. However, taking into consideration that the majority of you already knows enough about both Paradise Lost and Cradle of Filth, I decided to give some exposure to this pretty obscure debut by Mephistopheles, which was released on Adipocere Records in 1997. I remember reading review of this album in the old issue of Slayer Magazine, where Metallion said that everything on this album was very boring and average. Well, I can see where he is coming from, as this album does not feature any groundbreaking ideas or the most brilliant songs ever written. The question must arise then, if I partly agree with Metallion as far as this recording is concerned, why did I choose it as my selection of the month? The answer: unbelievable vibe! You either feel it (my case) or you don't, and that's what is going to make a difference. Although I said that this album does not feature the most brilliant songs ever written (and which one does besides 'Sweet X-Rated' and 'Illusions'? :-)), I must say that every song on this one is just extremely good. Overall this can be labeled as melodic black metal with keyboards and female vocals, but there is so much more to it than just an above description. These five corpse-painted Germans work extremely well inside (and sometimes outside) their favorite genre, constructing memorable songs by fully utilizing their respectful instruments. This notion is especially true in regard to very creative guitars, which instead of just creating some noisy background, as many blackmetal bands do, switch back

and forth between aggressive riffs and melodic mini-solos (what the hell are these??? :-)) Nordischer Kunstler's (which probably means Nordic Killer in German?) vocals are pretty standard for this type of music, but accompanying performance by Denise is nothing short of outstanding. She, certainly, does not possess a classically-trained vocal (this is not Therion, folks), but her angelic voice transmits so much feelings and emotions that every time I hear her singing... well, it's more than words...you just have to feel it. Another positive point for this band is their ability to write songs which, while sounding unlike each other (we have keyboard only intro and outro, couple fast and aggressive tunes, five-minute long instrumental, and almost doomy in its melancholy 'Infinite Dreams) still possess this overall feeling of unity, where you can easily say that this is still the same band playing. Lyrics, although pretty simple and occasionally a little bit too abstract, is another feature of this album that I would like to rave about. Actually, this album can be considered a concept one as all the songs deal with interconnection between universe and spirit and speak about adoration of and reverence to Mother Nature (not Internet webshop, hehe), although this concept is quite a loose one. Anyway, lyrics add up enormously to that vibe I was talking about earlier and round out the whole picture quite nicely. As far as highlights go, it's quite difficult to pick out any particular songs as the album's flow is very good, but if I am forced to do so, I would say 'Cosmos...', 'My Throne of Wisdom' and aforementioned 'Infinite Dreams'. All in all, very impressive debut by this German band, and another evidence that those who always look for something new and exciting will, eventually, be rewarded with such little gems as this one. Music for metallers consumed by nature, for those fond of endless fields, forest lakes and infinite sky or as Mephistopheles themselves put it 'For there are no borders but the ones you create...' Andy.