Judas Iscariot
To Embrace The Corpses Bleeding

Album dated 2002 for Judas Iscariot, a one-man band by the American multi-instrumentalist Andrew Harris, better known (at least I think) as Akhenaten, who was previously a member of bands like Sarcophagus, Jesus Fucking Christ, Nargaroth, and Maniac Butcher (the latter two in live performances).

The album is composed of 9 tracks for a total duration of about 40 minutes. It is a black metal album that is quite violent, sometimes characterized by depressive and melancholic moments (always within the genre's standards), well-structured, and this time the good Harris (this surname reminds me of someone...) hit the mark. The tracks are clearly inspired by the Scandinavian school, particularly many tracks reminiscent of Darkthrone. It begins with "I Awoke to a night of pain and carnage", a track that starts with a slow intro featuring thunder and lightning and continues for a few seconds before becoming a classic of Iscariot: the outbursts of the drum machine (this time no special guest behind the drums) accompany Harris's sick voice and particularly chilling riffs. The album continues in much the same vein with "Bathed in clouds of blood", my favorite track of the album.

It goes on with "Terror from the eastern sky": ten-second intro and following black fury. Instead, "Where Eagles Cry and Vultures Light" is presented as the most extreme track of the album. The riff is very beautiful. Then comes the most depressive and doom piece, namely "In the valley of death, I am their king". A slow track with some keyboard parts that make the song even darker. The album is completed by "With Lust and Murder for our Drink", "behold the Lamb of God descending", "Spectral dance of the macabre", and finally "The dead burst forth from their tombs".