Communion (album)
Encyclopedia
Communion is the seventh studio album by Greek death metal
band Septic Flesh
. It was released on March 17, 2008 worldwide, and March 25, 2008 in the United States, both dates through the French label Season of Mist
. The album is the first since the band's split up, after the release of Sumerian Daemons
, in 2003.
. The Philharmonic Orchestra of Prague
recorded the compositions with 80 instrumentalists and a choir of 32 singers.
, with the obscure atmosphere of gothic metal
, along with some influences of black metal
. The album features a full orchestra and choir, with more of 100 musicians — adding a classical element to the songs — led by Chris Antoniou that is responsible for the arrangements.
According to guitarist Sotiris Vayenas the album title meaning something like "communication with non-human entities."
The main theme of album is the mythology
, with elements from various ancient civilizations, including Egyptian
, Hellenic
and Sumer
ian.
reviewer Chad Bowar saying "The extreme elements of Septic Flesh are tempered with melody and contrasted nicely by the symphonic elements. The songwriting and arrangements are excellent. It's a great mix of tempos, intensities and atmospheres. From the beautiful to the brutal, Communion covers all the musical bases, and this is one of the best CDs Septic Flesh has done." Kostas Sarampalis of Chronicles of Chaos praised the album, stating "In short, Septic Flesh have come out of their coma in great shape with a fantastic album."
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
band Septic Flesh
Septic Flesh
Septic Flesh is a death metal band from Athens, Greece, which was founded in 1990.- History :Septic Flesh was formed in March 1990 by Sotiris Vayenas , Spiros Antoniou , and Christos Antoniou , and quickly released a debut EP, Temple of the Lost Race in December 1991...
. It was released on March 17, 2008 worldwide, and March 25, 2008 in the United States, both dates through the French label Season of Mist
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is a record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing...
. The album is the first since the band's split up, after the release of Sumerian Daemons
Sumerian Daemons
Sumerian Daemons is the sixth studio album by the Greek death metal band Septic Flesh. It was released by Hammerheart Records in 2003....
, in 2003.
Background and production
Septic Flesh first announced a reunion show at the Metal Healing Festival in their home-country on February 19, 2007 and shortly hereafter a new full-length on French label Season of Mist. Communion including a full classical orchestra, arranged by guitarist Christos Antoniou, who has a masters degree in concert music from the London College of MusicLondon College of Music
The London College of Music is a music school which is part of the University of West London in England.The LCM was founded in 1887 and existed as an independent music conservatoire based at Great Marlborough Street in central London until 1991...
. The Philharmonic Orchestra of Prague
Prague Philharmonia
The Prague Philharmonic Orchestra was established in 1995 by Czech musicians with the German conductor Friedemann Riehle. The Prague Philharmonic Orchestra quickly developed into one of the leading orchestras for CD-recording in Europe. The orchestra plays about 200 recording sessions every year...
recorded the compositions with 80 instrumentalists and a choir of 32 singers.
Musical and lyrical themes
Communion combines the heaviness and brutality of death metalDeath metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
, with the obscure atmosphere of gothic metal
Gothic metal
Gothic metal or goth metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that combines the aggression of doom metal with the dark melancholy of gothic rock. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different styles of heavy metal music...
, along with some influences of black metal
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
. The album features a full orchestra and choir, with more of 100 musicians — adding a classical element to the songs — led by Chris Antoniou that is responsible for the arrangements.
According to guitarist Sotiris Vayenas the album title meaning something like "communication with non-human entities."
The main theme of album is the mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
, with elements from various ancient civilizations, including Egyptian
Egyptians
Egyptians are nation an ethnic group made up of Mediterranean North Africans, the indigenous people of Egypt.Egyptian identity is closely tied to geography. The population of Egypt is concentrated in the lower Nile Valley, the small strip of cultivable land stretching from the First Cataract to...
, Hellenic
Hellenistic civilization
Hellenistic civilization represents the zenith of Greek influence in the ancient world from 323 BCE to about 146 BCE...
and Sumer
Sumer
Sumer was a civilization and historical region in southern Mesopotamia, modern Iraq during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age....
ian.
Critical reception
Communion received several positive reviews, with About.comAbout.com
About.com is an online source for original information and advice. It is written in English, and is aimed primarily at North Americans. It is owned by The New York Times Company....
reviewer Chad Bowar saying "The extreme elements of Septic Flesh are tempered with melody and contrasted nicely by the symphonic elements. The songwriting and arrangements are excellent. It's a great mix of tempos, intensities and atmospheres. From the beautiful to the brutal, Communion covers all the musical bases, and this is one of the best CDs Septic Flesh has done." Kostas Sarampalis of Chronicles of Chaos praised the album, stating "In short, Septic Flesh have come out of their coma in great shape with a fantastic album."
Track listing
All lyrics written by Sotiris V., all music composed by Septic Flesh.Personnel
- Seth Siro Anton – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, artworkCover artCover art is the illustration or photograph on the outside of a published product such as a book , magazine, comic book, video game , DVD, CD, videotape, or music album. The art has a primarily commercial function, i.e... - Sotiris V. – guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, clean vocals - Christos Antoniou – guitar, samplersSampler (musical instrument)A sampler is an electronic musical instrument similar in some respects to a synthesizer but, instead of generating sounds, it uses recordings of sounds that are loaded or recorded into it by the user and then played back by means of a keyboard, sequencer or other triggering device to perform or...
, orchestrationOrchestrationOrchestration is the study or practice of writing music for an orchestra or of adapting for orchestra music composed for another medium... - Fotis Benardo – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Marios IliopoulosMarios IliopoulosMarios Iliopoulos, born December 16, 1969 in Thessaloniki, Greece is an acclaimed Greek heavy metal guitarist and founder of the Greek/Swedish melodic death metal band Nightrage, and a former member of Exhumation....
– guitar soloGuitar soloIn popular music, a guitar solo is a melodic passage, section, or entire piece of music written for an electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. Guitar solos, which often contain varying degrees of improvisation, are used in many styles of popular music such as blues, jazz, rock and metal styles such...
on "Babel's Gate" - Fredrik NordströmFredrik NordströmBjörn Tom Fredrik Nordström, born on 5 January 1967, is a Swedish record producer and guitar player for the heavy metal band Dream Evil. Nordström is one of the leading melodic death metal producers in Sweden, and he has worked with some of the genre's top acts, including At the Gates, Arch Enemy,...
– sound engineerAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
, producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music... - Henric Udd – sound engineer
- Peter in de Betou – sound masterAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
Release history
| Region | Date | Label | Format | Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Worldwide | Season of Mist Season of Mist Season of Mist is a record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing... |
Compact Disc Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... |
SOM 174 | |
| United States |