Moonspell
Under Satanæ

THE REVIEW

First and foremost, a necessary premise and reflection must be made regarding this "Under Satanæ". Indeed, throughout its duration and for all the songs comprising it, it is what filmmakers call a "Remake". A remake of songs that Moonspell had already released in 1992 concerning "Serpent Angel", which was, for those who don't know, the very first cry of a band, Morbid God, which then, through alchemical magic, became one of the most original and followed bands, for better or for worse, of the worldwide Gothic Metal scene with a different nomenclature, logically, and a wholly original and breathtaking attitude (at least for those times, one understands). As for the tracks that follow, they are composed of the content of the first demo tape printed in 1993 "Anno Satanæ", when they were already called Moonspell, and the subsequent mini-album "Under the Moonspell". So, nothing new under the sky, and purely for clarification.

The reflection, instead, is inherent in the fact that today, unfortunately for Moonspell, but also for us fans who have loved and followed them from the beginning, fifteen years have passed since those beginnings, and times have changed, for, there are those who say "credit", there are those who say "discredit" of the band itself that, almost with every release has lashed the listeners by taking a different artistic direction.
Beyond the fact that this can be at least disorienting, it takes nothing away from the merit of Moonspell in having innovated or invented a genre strand that many have appreciated and still appreciate (and I am among the latter), but at least one must be objective and recognize that recently, and I speak of this year that is passing, the band's creative streak is inexorably drying up.

It pains me to make this argument, but for honesty and logic, I come to no other conclusion. Otherwise, what sense would it make to release within a few months a collection of tracks ("The Silver Eye") that added absolutely nothing to their valuable discography, and that did not contain any new or interesting tracks that were not already published, and then a reissue of the very first songs, those, just to be clear, preceding "Wolfheart"?
Certainly, speaking of "Under Satanæ", the tracks have been remixed with today's technology, which Moonspell has drawn on plentifully, naturally being able to afford it, and they all sound gritty and pumped up, but the suspicion that Ribeiro and company want to blissfully and openly take us for a ride trying to squeeze a few extra bucks out of us remains, and cannot help but influence the judgment of those who listen to them or write about them. This is the classic album to download rather than buy in original, dedicated more to long-time enthusiasts than to those who met Moonspell with "Sin/Pecado" or, more recently, with "Memorial". And perhaps it was precisely the success of the latter that pushed the band to, as they say, "ride the wave", since Moonspell themselves and even more so their record label, will have noticed that the public follows them with greater passion and numbers when they interpret the hardest and darkest moments of their being, which then, to put it all, since we are in the mood for outbursts, are also the most inspired and full of charm.

Having made this long and perilous premise, let's move on to the contents. About these, no one disputes: the songs, for those who have never listened to them in the original, are all imbued with a style, of morbid and animalistic passion, which makes each more splendid than the last. No synthesizers placed at will to replace the harmonic sections, no twilight derived from today's living, just pure and "simple" gothic style drawing from multiple influences: from nordic-rooted Black Metal ("Serpent Angel"), to the tribal Mediterranean folklore, warm and sensual of Portugal, which can be found, for instance, in the prologue "Halla Alle Halla Al Rabka Halla (Praeludium/Incantatum Solistitium)", or in "Chorai Lusitânia! (Epilogus/Incantatam Maresia)", the only acoustic interlude, perhaps the most successful in Moonspell's career, of the whole album. The lapping of the sea, a guitar echoing lost and distant, a progression that becomes steadily sustained in its simplicity. And that's already all said.
There is still room for the band's more uncompromising and furious side, with tracks that closely resemble what Moonspell will be with "Wolfheart" and "Irreligious": a blasphemous and virile entity, endowed with such great talent as to be able to tune concepts that in their songs become synonyms for each other. So much so that death, satanism, sex, and lust, accompanied by nostalgia and pain make one, and they do it in a way that knows well how to fascinate and that can only leave one in awe.
These things are, naturally, part of the band's background but are a clear sign, thinking back to those times, of how much their versatility and their genius were a starting signal for other bands that then in the subsequent years made a big splash. And it is no joke. The class oozes from every note, from every passage in the songs, passing through the brutal and uncompromising mood of episodes like "Tenebrarum Oratorium (Andamento I/Erudit Compendyum)" or like "Tenebrarum Oratorium (Andamento II/Erotic Compendyum)", to finely chiseled moments of sensuality and hinted-at lust, as in "Opus Diabolicum (Andamento III/Instrumental Compendyum)", one of the most beautiful songs that Moonspell has ever composed, with an epic cadence as never before and a rhythm, towards the beginning, almost thrash-like.

Episodes. Stories that begin and end within a few minutes, and that tell of lovers lost in the dark, of ravenous wolves hunting their prey in paths with a misty and wind-swept atmosphere, of Hells opening in the sun-baked land of Portugal, terrible and never imaginable in those places. Stories that tell of many things. Original, fascinating, alluring, yet always with one foot firmly planted in a somber and blasphemous, rocky gothic style and well-aimed, which surely gives a superlative value to the band's predominant legacy. It is another example of this is "Goat of Fire", perhaps the best track of the lot, which is the summary and at the same time the culmination of the wonderful succession of atmospheres that pass here.

Decide for yourself. Certainly, fans will appreciate this work, and many, I'm willing to bet, will staunchly defend it, emphasizing the sublime quality of the content. Others instead, will turn their face and tell Moonspell all sorts of things, and they can't really be blamed, at least in this context. For my part, I appreciate it, but allow me not to share. I would have had more pleasure in listening to something new than something already heard and digested, but there it is. Even my rating reflects my opinion, as I imagine is fair. And this hurts me a lot, I confess. But don't be misled, it remains still a great performance, and I'm sure there will be someone who will appreciate it and see it differently than I do. I will be infinitely happy.