Review by Felix on June 4, 2024.

Blessed with a stable line-up, Tyrant released their second full-length precisely one year after their debut. The band had not changed its song-writing formula. Just as on the debut, the dudes were not interested in very opulent tracks, but still put the focus on compact and (hopefully) crispy songs with conservative patterns. Lead vocalist Kerrmit, seemingly an import from the Muppet Show, still lent the material his somewhat rebellious and snotty voice and the manual skills of the instrumentalists gave no reason to complain. So far, so good.

Unfortunately, the song material does not make my day. The problems begin early. Do you feel the “Dark Eyes of London” that stare at you? Not me, I just endure the meaningless intro of the same name. “Up the Hammer” also sucks. It seems to be a more or less spontaneous opener with an aggressive chorus, but after three and a half minutes a sugary plastic part shows up that Stormwitch could not have performed worse. This sequence seems to be taken from the book “How I desecrate my own opener very efficiently”, chapter one. Reading is sometimes damaging to the mind, as this shows once again.

But good news, after this idiotic kind of experiment, Tyrant concentrate on their core competence and present eight generic, relatively predictable tracks of heavy metal. Surprising ideas were not taken along to the recording studio. The song titles reflect the absence of flashes of inspiration: “Metal Rules” and “We Will Rock” are the most impressive examples. Yet it goes without saying that one can record a great album without being innovative. Everything is fine as long as the song material can rely on crunchy riffs, catchy choruses and a level of substance which avoids one-dimensional, overly simple song configurations. But honestly speaking, Tyrant have to struggle in order to fulfil these conditions. Sometimes they are successful – “Streetfighter” is not as transparent as many other songs. It shines with a slightly ominous atmosphere, a compositional depth and well elaborated guitar work. In addition, the drum performance is more interesting than that of the other tracks, while both the chorus and the verses hit the mark. But there are also a lot of songs in which the band walks on the edge, always in danger to fall into the abyss of faceless interchangeability. Big parts of the material commute between pretty kind and fairly insignificant. At least the songs don't sound lifeless or sterile and we can assume that the band did not lack integrity. Nevertheless, the album demonstrates why Tyrant never stood in the centre of the German metal press, to express it politely.

Production-wise, the band avoids serious mistakes. The guitars sound too happy and lack volume from time to time (“Goddess”), but that’s no big deal. So it’s up to you whether or not you want to check little highlights like “Danger” or their Accept inspired closer “We Will Rock”. I cannot say that it was a rewarding experience to dive deeply into the full album, but it is also true that the worldwide metal scene has already been tortured with much worse releases. Even the golden eighties did not only produce eternal classics, if my “Metal Heart” doesn’t tell me lies.

Rating: 5.8 out of 10

Review by Felix on March 31, 2023.

In my humble opinion, Samael's third full-length is the best album that the dudes released so far. Honestly speaking, it is my expectation that the institution from Switzerland will never reach the level of this work again. Of course, the band has modified its style in a significant manner, but this is not the crucial factor. Of greater relevance is the thrilling combination of nefariousness and perfidy that forms the basis of "Ceremony of Opposites". With regard to the further evolution of the versatile group, the exact recipe for this mixture seems to be irretrievably lost. We must take the most of the moment and delve into the here presented album from time to time. Welcome to the ten monolithic ashlars of "Ceremony of Opposites" that await you in total darkness.

"Black Trip" - this is not only the title of the opener. At the same time, it describes the programmatic approach of the album in a very precise manner. Subversive guitar lines unite with demonic vocals and their interplay has the power to turn the brightest day into the blackest night. Without being brutal in the narrow sense of the term, Samael pledge allegiance to the very sinister side of metal. Their rhythms are almost groovy and, I know it sounds absurd, danceable. Despite this fact, any type of positive feeling does not show up. Instead, the actors keep a close eye on other features. Rarely pompous (at the beginning of "'Till We Meet Again"), sometimes desperate and always diabolical, this is the impulsive mix that the band presents. It is a crude yet fascinating intertwining of cold-heartedness and passion. Amazingly enough, Samael never lose their way. This means, among other things, that velocity is of minor relevance. Instead, the group enjoys the depth of mid-tempo rhythms without boring the listener. The drilling guitars alone are able to keep up the tension and the occasionally occurring keyboards, for example at the start of "Flagellation" or at the end of the title track, increase the menacing and misanthropic aura of the album.

Although this aura has absolutely nothing in common with that of a happy event, the fittingly titled full-length thrives on its ceremonial character. The band is to be strongly commended for having created an almost ritualistic style without falling back on folkloristic elements. I want to emphasize this, because sometimes exactly these elements endanger the metallic fundament of the albums of Samael's competitors. But maybe the Swiss band just had no choice. The sound of cowbells and alphorns would not have been a good idea, if I am not mistaken. Samael were aware of this situation and set the focus on a dense, abysmal and domineering production. It appears as the more or less perfect technical implementation of the musician's sombre visions. The high quality level of the sound matches with that of the compositions themselves and some of the best tunes scream for a detailed description.

The opener, "Baphomet's Throne" and the title track form an unholy trinity. While "Black Trip" kicks off the album with sharp leads, the song about the demon marks the highlight in the centre of the album in view of its negativity and relentlessness. The ponderous title track finishes the full-length while leading the audience to the fathomless pits of eternal damnation. But one thing is for sure. Despite the glory of these tracks, the old saying applies: the whole is more than the sum of its parts. Therefore, I strongly recommend to listen to the album from the beginning to the end in order to experience its constantly growing atmosphere. Even more than 20 years after its release, the impenetrably dark flair of the output is still impressive. Samael demonstrate a radical approach without neglecting melodic elements. As far as I can see, this kind of radicalism has remained unique. I do not know any other (younger) band that has been able to create a work with an extremely robust flair which is based on the same compositional formula. Viewed from this perspective, this ceremony must continue.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Review by Felix on March 31, 2023.

In my humble opinion, Samael's third full-length is the best album that the dudes released so far. Honestly speaking, it is my expectation that the institution from Switzerland will never reach the level of this work again. Of course, the band has modified its style in a significant manner, but this is not the crucial factor. Of greater relevance is the thrilling combination of nefariousness and perfidy that forms the basis of "Ceremony of Opposites". With regard to the further evolution of the versatile group, the exact recipe for this mixture seems to be irretrievably lost. We must take the most of the moment and delve into the here presented album from time to time. Welcome to the ten monolithic ashlars of "Ceremony of Opposites" that await you in total darkness.

"Black Trip" - this is not only the title of the opener. At the same time, it describes the programmatic approach of the album in a very precise manner. Subversive guitar lines unite with demonic vocals and their interplay has the power to turn the brightest day into the blackest night. Without being brutal in the narrow sense of the term, Samael pledge allegiance to the very sinister side of metal. Their rhythms are almost groovy and, I know it sounds absurd, danceable. Despite this fact, any type of positive feeling does not show up. Instead, the actors keep a close eye on other features. Rarely pompous (at the beginning of "'Till We Meet Again"), sometimes desperate and always diabolical, this is the impulsive mix that the band presents. It is a crude yet fascinating intertwining of cold-heartedness and passion. Amazingly enough, Samael never lose their way. This means, among other things, that velocity is of minor relevance. Instead, the group enjoys the depth of mid-tempo rhythms without boring the listener. The drilling guitars alone are able to keep up the tension and the occasionally occurring keyboards, for example at the start of "Flagellation" or at the end of the title track, increase the menacing and misanthropic aura of the album.

Although this aura has absolutely nothing in common with that of a happy event, the fittingly titled full-length thrives on its ceremonial character. The band is to be strongly commended for having created an almost ritualistic style without falling back on folkloristic elements. I want to emphasize this, because sometimes exactly these elements endanger the metallic fundament of the albums of Samael's competitors. But maybe the Swiss band just had no choice. The sound of cowbells and alphorns would not have been a good idea, if I am not mistaken. Samael were aware of this situation and set the focus on a dense, abysmal and domineering production. It appears as the more or less perfect technical implementation of the musician's sombre visions. The high quality level of the sound matches with that of the compositions themselves and some of the best tunes scream for a detailed description.

The opener, "Baphomet's Throne" and the title track form an unholy trinity. While "Black Trip" kicks off the album with sharp leads, the song about the demon marks the highlight in the centre of the album in view of its negativity and relentlessness. The ponderous title track finishes the full-length while leading the audience to the fathomless pits of eternal damnation. But one thing is for sure. Despite the glory of these tracks, the old saying applies: the whole is more than the sum of its parts. Therefore, I strongly recommend to listen to the album from the beginning to the end in order to experience its constantly growing atmosphere. Even more than 20 years after its release, the impenetrably dark flair of the output is still impressive. Samael demonstrate a radical approach without neglecting melodic elements. As far as I can see, this kind of radicalism has remained unique. I do not know any other (younger) band that has been able to create a work with an extremely robust flair which is based on the same compositional formula. Viewed from this perspective, this ceremony must continue.

Rating: 9 out of 10