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Black background. A papal miter with the figure of a skull hidden among the precious golden embroidery and two other small bronze skulls applied to the lappets.
"Pope Satan I" is the title of this mysterious album and it adds everything and nothing to the idea one might have of its content.
In fact, Corpus Demoni seems to be a debut side-project from some probably already known artist because the inventive depth and the originality of the sound and atmospheres indicate a capable hand. However, this work represents something removed from everything, indefinable in genre and style even despite the mystical and esoteric connotations of the cover. And behind the name Corpus Demoni, it is very difficult to understand who might be involved.
This seems to me, however, a secondary issue. In fact, "Pope Satan I" struck me for the music, beyond the (perhaps) provocative references and certainly no more satanic than those of many more or less pathetic groups.
If I had to place this sound, I would label it apocalyptic-ambient. Deep abysses that could be those of other dimensions or the dreamlike subconscious; ancestral manipulations of classical music, with echoes of liturgical organ and strange deceased orchestras; vibrations on the verge of subsonic that almost certainly are there specifically to tickle the brain and the guts. So much so that after a first listening that leaves you puzzled, you feel like listening again and find yourself catapulted elsewhere, with a mixture of discomfort and seduction... in short, this music is a kind of sonic drug that then conditions you in your sleep and spins in your head when you least expect it.
And then you might start to wonder if there isn't something more than just niche music... and if that reference to Satan isn't something more than a philosophical or theological provocation. If I really have to agree with the thesis that "satanic music" exists, I would say it's this. So far from the screamed and standardized metal, but also from the experimental currents of certain electronic and certain folk music.
Editorial note: extremely sparse cover; no label or publisher mentioned; virtually nonexistent credits... yet the titles of the four tracks are cryptic and essentially incomprehensible.
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