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Rating:
Among the fathers of black. There are no other terms or adjectives to describe Immortal. And there are no adjectives to describe the void their departure has left. I don't think any black band has ever produced such chill, such coldness and aggression in their compositions.
Just a mere year had passed since the release of "At The Heart Of Winter." Criticism upon criticism had filled that masterpiece that had found the right union between aggression and melody. Demonaz was no longer there, but Abbath manages with this "Damned In Black" to give Immortal a new turn, bringing them back to that brutal speed that had always distinguished them. Seven songs that try to remind us of the glories of "Battles In The North," but they don't quite succeed. Yes, because it was difficult, once on the melodic path, to return to the shores of power. They play well, Abbath sings excellently, but something fails to bring back the glories of "Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism" or the masterpiece "Battles In The North." It's certainly not their masterpiece.
It starts fairly well with "Triumph," which seems to me intentionally long: a variety of riffs, rhythmic and vocal solutions all supported by the usual Immortal rhythmic section. But the track, in its duration, tires a little, as does the subsequent "Wrath From Above," which still presents some good points like a decent solo and a more restrained section (calculated?). "Against The Tide" turns out to be quite good: slower part, speeds up, then explodes definitively in its violence. The two following tracks are instead bland and unoriginal: "My Dimension" and "The Darkness That Embrace Me" are in line with what has already been heard and do not present any outstanding innovations, they almost seem like fillers in an album that so far has shown few ideas truly worthy of note. With "In Our Mystic Visions Blest" Immortal rise again to then explode definitively in the title-track which I consider really one of their classics: "Damned In Black" is melodic, icy, melancholic in the acoustic parts and seems taken directly from the previous album that I loved so much. And it continues until the end, thrilling and chilling our minds taken by this jewel of a song. If it weren't for the title track, my rating would certainly have been lower. But I consider this album an excellent bridge between "At The Heart Of Winter" and "Sons Of Northern Darkness," which I consider the first a masterpiece, the second the excellent farewell of a historic band in the black field.
If you want to take Immortal in small doses, this "Damned in Black" is fine. If you are die-hard fans, you might not even like it. However good, nothing more.
Tracklist and Lyrics
01 Triumph (05:40)
It's a dark time
Darker than all days before
Darker than all years before
It's a cold age
Colder than all days before
Colder than all years before
Taste a tide
Where landscapes surround
Us with blight
On the windrippled steps
The everflowing streams of
Our enemies
Blood runs cold
A strong ride
Stronger than all days before
Stronger than all years before
The might and pride
Mightier than all days before
Mightier than all years before
Come taste a tide
Where demons play the mind
On the windrippled steps
The everflowing streams of
Our enemies blood runs cold
Blow the horn for our
Tide to come
Triumph our battle be won
Battle all the lands
It's the triumph of the ages
Empires fall by my hands
In the triumph of the ages
Black demonic hordes
Journey against the earth
Coming from the north
Speeding on a gathering wind
It's a dark time
Darker than all days before
Darker than all years before
It's a cold age
Colder than all days before
Colder than all years before
Come taste a tide
Where landscapes surround
Us with blight
On the windrippled steps
The everflowing streams of
Our enemies
Blood runs cold
04 My Dimension (04:32)
Eyes of stone
Eyes of ice are
Watching me
Their glimpsing light
Comes in my sleep
Chained in a dream
From the ancient deeps
Mindtravelling the
Darkest paths
Eyes of stone
Eyes of ice are
Haunting me
Their burning light
Comes in the night
Awaken from a dream
But still I'm in
Mindtravelling the
Darkest paths
Come with me
I promise you
The darkest desires
Come with me
I promise you
A dimension that's higher
Follow me through the
Unending
On a path where crystals
Breathe and
Night and day are same
Enter to a grimmer dark
For us to be
Eyes of stone
Eyes of ice are
Watching me
Their glimpsing light
Comes in my dream
Chained in a dream
From the ancient deeps
Mindtravelling the
Darkest paths
06 In Our Mystic Visions Blest (03:11)
Where the great winds blow
An ancient tide spills forth
Remember our diabolical pacts
Summoned by the
Call of the dark
Only in dark and
Sinister shadows
My thoughts come clear
And the voice in my mind
Sounds oh so real
The years of memory pass
In our mystic visions blest
Where the ground
Shudders wind
And the world
Shakes and roars
Our ghastly souls are one
In our mystic visions
Blest forever
Never bury the
Years that are gone
Our ghastly souls are one
Where the great winds blow
An ancient tide spills forth
Here we made diabolical pacts
Summoned by
The call of the dark
07 Damned in Black (06:51)
March of the black
Dungeoned ones
Beyond the dim
They shape
March of the black
Dungeoned ones
Beyond the dim
They lurk
March of the black
Awakened beasts
Beyond the dim
They rage
Hordes of evil march
Until the end you fall
Drawn to the apocalypse
It is the age of ending
Damned in black
The ghastly rivers whirl
Swallowing all in sight
Come the vision we await
Into the blinding depths
And never to return...
Damned in black
March of the black
Dungeoned ones
Beyond the dim
They shape
March of the brave
Immortal gods
From beyond the dim
We rise...
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