Review by Felix on May 1, 2019.

Anti Terrestrial Black Metal was among the most promising German black metal debuts of all times. Thus, the bar was set high and Magoth were facing a serious challenge. And I wish it would be different, but to be honest, the dudes were not able to outperform their own first album. Zeitgeist : Dystopia can be deemed competitive with the vast majority of the genre releases, but it is not as outstanding as the phenomenal first strike was. Why? Well, the album does not suffer from technical deficiencies. The guys seem to understand their art very well and perform their songs with virtuosity. The production, to highlight another technical issue, is on a par with that of the album's predecessor. Zeitgeist : Dystopia boasts with a dense, mighty and pretty strong sound. Only five or ten percent of clarity are missing, but this is a negligible. So, it's still a kind of mystery why the album is not able to continue the success story of the newcomers - at least in my humble opinion.

No doubt, Magoth have managed the task to write new great songs that match the style of the debut's compositions. The band saw no reason to readjust its musical vision and I agree absolutely in this respect. But, and here comes the significant change, the hit rate is definitely lower than before. Okay, "The Fate of Resurrection" reanimates the flair of Ancient's expressive debut from 1994, not only in view of its first guitar tones which seem to originate from (Apha-)Zel himself. "Sinister Forces Arose" sounds like a wild, spooky and simply fantastic leftover of their early days. It lies in close proximity to the material of the debut and celebrates black metal in perfection. The song is catchy, but not commercial and furious yet comprehensible. Moreover, its enormous intensity awakens the true spirit of the genre. The similarly designed "Above the Sacred Lands" is also worth mentioning due to its brutal verses and the atmospheric yet powerful instrumental part. Some stoic leads segue into an acoustic intermezzo, but don't be afraid: an explosive outburst, accompanied by an animalistic scream shatters the silence quickly. By the way, maybe the vocals do not embody anything else but the genre-typical way of articulation. Nevertheless, they definitely add value to the album.

Beside these devastating highlights, Magoth show a previously unknown vulnerability to good but somehow pretty average black metal tunes. "Summoning the Apocalypse" is a more than solid song and marks a kind of bridge between the jewels of the album and these tracks that cannot shine with outstanding lines, choruses or other details. Honestly speaking, in particular the last third of the material suffers from the absence of exciting moments. The highly talented band fails to bring its full potential to life and even though the dudes avoid major flaws, it is sad to experience that the album ends in a totally unspectacular manner. The tracks still create a certain mood, but unlike the material of the debut or the aforementioned highlights, they are not able to get the listener under their spell. Anyway, taken for itself, this album is still recommendable, but the next full-length will give certainty whether or not Magoth are able to challenge the global black metal champions from Sweden, Norway or anywhere else.

Rating: 7.4 out of 10

Review by Felix on May 1, 2019.

Anti Terrestrial Black Metal was among the most promising German black metal debuts of all times. Thus, the bar was set high and Magoth were facing a serious challenge. And I wish it would be different, but to be honest, the dudes were not able to outperform their own first album. Zeitgeist : Dystopia can be deemed competitive with the vast majority of the genre releases, but it is not as outstanding as the phenomenal first strike was. Why? Well, the album does not suffer from technical deficiencies. The guys seem to understand their art very well and perform their songs with virtuosity. The production, to highlight another technical issue, is on a par with that of the album's predecessor. Zeitgeist : Dystopia boasts with a dense, mighty and pretty strong sound. Only five or ten percent of clarity are missing, but this is a negligible. So, it's still a kind of mystery why the album is not able to continue the success story of the newcomers - at least in my humble opinion.

No doubt, Magoth have managed the task to write new great songs that match the style of the debut's compositions. The band saw no reason to readjust its musical vision and I agree absolutely in this respect. But, and here comes the significant change, the hit rate is definitely lower than before. Okay, "The Fate of Resurrection" reanimates the flair of Ancient's expressive debut from 1994, not only in view of its first guitar tones which seem to originate from (Apha-)Zel himself. "Sinister Forces Arose" sounds like a wild, spooky and simply fantastic leftover of their early days. It lies in close proximity to the material of the debut and celebrates black metal in perfection. The song is catchy, but not commercial and furious yet comprehensible. Moreover, its enormous intensity awakens the true spirit of the genre. The similarly designed "Above the Sacred Lands" is also worth mentioning due to its brutal verses and the atmospheric yet powerful instrumental part. Some stoic leads segue into an acoustic intermezzo, but don't be afraid: an explosive outburst, accompanied by an animalistic scream shatters the silence quickly. By the way, maybe the vocals do not embody anything else but the genre-typical way of articulation. Nevertheless, they definitely add value to the album.

Beside these devastating highlights, Magoth show a previously unknown vulnerability to good but somehow pretty average black metal tunes. "Summoning the Apocalypse" is a more than solid song and marks a kind of bridge between the jewels of the album and these tracks that cannot shine with outstanding lines, choruses or other details. Honestly speaking, in particular the last third of the material suffers from the absence of exciting moments. The highly talented band fails to bring its full potential to life and even though the dudes avoid major flaws, it is sad to experience that the album ends in a totally unspectacular manner. The tracks still create a certain mood, but unlike the material of the debut or the aforementioned highlights, they are not able to get the listener under their spell. Anyway, taken for itself, this album is still recommendable, but the next full-length will give certainty whether or not Magoth are able to challenge the global black metal champions from Sweden, Norway or anywhere else.

Rating: 7.4 out of 10

Review by Alex on December 17, 2018.

Usually when a band takes so long to put out their first full length release, in most cases they are dedicating all energies into crafting something that will have a serious impact on the scene they represent. Letheria first emerged in the year 1999 with a demo residing under the name Profane Oath, since then, the Finish band has only been releasing material in the form of Ep's and demos up until 2018. The one thing I admire the most about the Finish metal scene is the quality of music they strive to create; under no circumstance do they relax or take music for granted, they always give their best attempt at molding their craft and presenting it for listening pleasure and scrutiny. What Letheria has done on this latest offering titled Death-Principle, is take influences of melodic death metal, punk metal, hard rock, old school death metal, hardcore and black metal and somehow mix them effectively to produce a piece of work that has many faces each boasting a proficiency in a select sub-genre of metal. 19 years of experience has done nothing but equip and harness Letheria’s growing strength in diverse musical compositions. Letheria’s drive to command attention is brilliantly put on a display with Death-Principle due to the multiple styles and song writing techniques used in the generating of their first full length record. There is so much happening on each track that it would be unfair to label Death-Principle “run of the mill” death metal. Death-Principle is the culmination of experience and dedication, it’s a monster comprised of many horrors that comes to surface ever so often before being restrained.

Given the somewhat shaky beginning of the record, it was difficult at first to make sense of what Letheria had set out to accomplish. The songs were not too shabby at all, they however were not very effective at cohesively blending the various styles thus leading to mixed feelings about the opening moments of the band’s debut record Death-Principle. It however picked up interest immediately on “One Spit of a Thousand Swears”. At this time the formula begins to demonstrate signs of potency, the idea behind the record sparks understanding and from that point everything else etches onto the record with purpose. With the arrival of “Pestchrist” Letheria start pelting out the melodies and man what a treat they are to hear; you get the feeling of listening to an entirely different record. The arrangements groove into the rhythm much more smoothly instead of sounding stranded and searching for its place. Following sudden burst of momentum, more wicked tunes begin to crawl from the dark, songs like “Call the Horns”, “The Kingdom in Coffins of Kings and Gods” and my favorite, “Malaria Magdalena” battle for the spotlight while delivering catchy guitar leads and riffs. The drumming is a definite highlight on Death-Principle, it goes from mid-paced groovy, to hardcore, to melodic black metal, to black/death blasts beats and constant snare stomping. It must require a level head to memorize and execute such ever changing drum styles; well done the drummer. The riffs hold up against the test of the drums; they partake in the musical journey with a few added surprises where you least expect them. The vocals are a blend of snarling grunts, punk laden declarations in the form of shouting and a chants that lay naked and raw on Death-Principle. The vocalist delivers an array of blends during the lyrical passages spoken on each entry thus adhering to the multiple faces of Letheria’s Death-Principle. 

In most ways you may consider this venture an experimental one judging by the diverse patterns of Letheria’s sound. Death-Principle seems as though the band is just having fun and after being around for nearly decades who can tell them not to. 

Pestilential Passages of Protest

• “Pestchrist”
• ”Call The Horns”
• ”The Kingdom in Coffins of Kings and Gods”
• ”Malaria Magdalena”
• ”With Tears of Urine You Will Cry His Name”
• ”Fire Speaks”

Rating: 8.2 out of 10