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Saturday, November 7, 2009
PANTOKRETOR - AURUM / 2007 / DISCOGRAPHY / BIOGRAPHY / REVIEW
THIS ALBUM CONTAIN(10-TRACKS)
1-GOLD OF HAVILAH
2-BEPHELIM
3-WORDS OF AGUR
4-FROM THE NORTH CLOTHED IN GOLD
5-WHERE LILITH FOUND HER PEACE
6-THE ORDER OF MALCHISEDEC
7-KING OF BABYLON
8-THE MADNESS OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR
9-THY FEEBLE FLAME
10-THE HIDDEN TREASURE
PANTOKRETOR - A DECADE OF THOUGHTS/2007
THIS COMPILATION CONTAIN(14-TRACKS)
1-PUNISH THE EVIL
2-UNCLEAN PLANTS
3-COME LET US FLEE
4-BUNDSFORVANTS
5-LEVIATHAN
6-LAMENTATION
7-NEBUCHADNEZZAR
8-GUDABLODEST KRAFT
9-SEPARATED BY NIGHT
10-VIA DOLOROSA
11-TIDEVARV
12-CUT INTO PEACES
13-WHITE ROBES
14-PSALM 29
PANTOKRETOR - BLOD / 2003
THIS ALBUM CONTAIN(10-TRACKS)
1-EDEN
2-FORBANNAD MARK
3-BLOD ROPAR FRAN JORDEN
4-SYNDAFLODEN
5-BUNDSFORVANT
6-MORIA KALLAR
7-TIDEVARV
8-O GUDS LAMM
9-GUDABLODETS KRAFT
10-EVIGHETENS GRYNING
PANTOKRETOR - SONGS OF SOLOMON/2001
THIS ALBUM CONTAIN(6-TRACKS)
1-UR INTETS MORKER
2-DIVINE LIGHT
3-UNDER HIMMELEN
4-COME LET US FLEE
5-SEPARATED BU NIGHT
6-BEHIND THY VEIL
PANTOKRETOR - 1997 / 2000 / 2001
THIS COMPILATION CONTAIN(13-TRACKS)
1-MIND
2-ANCIENT PAST
3-PUNISH THE EVIL
4-UNCLEAN PLANTS
5-EVEN UNTO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH
6-BORDERLAND
7-VIA DOLOROSA
8-ODE TILL OLOV SKOTKONUNG
9-LAMENTATION
10-DAUGHTER OF THE KING
11-KAPPLATEN
12-BLOD PA DINA HANDER
13-VALS I BURK MOLL
CREDITS:
Karl Walfridsson - Vocals
Mattias Johansson - Guitar
Jonas Wallinder - Bass
Rickard Gustafsson - Drums
Jonathan "Steele" Jansson - Guitars,Bkvs
Hubertus Liljegren - Guitar On (Crimson Moonlight)
BIOGRAPHY:(PANTOKRATOR)
In ancient Greek Pantokrator means Lord Almighty.Some members created a Doom Metal band called Holy Matrimony.Pantokrator was originally formed in autumn 1996.Their first gig was planned before they actually had written any songs. The line-up wasn't complete until just shortly before the gig. They started by playing covers by Tourniquet and Mortification. They also wrote a few songs of their own, On 1997 "Pantokrator" recorded a demo "Unclean Plants/Ancient Path". Shortly thereafter the band split up, but Karl and Mattias didn't want this to be the end. New members were found in Rickard (Drums) and Jonas (Bass). With the new lineup the music took a turn Against Heavier domains.
CONTINUED BIOGRAPHY:
(Pantokrator@My Space)
1998 In spring 1998, Pantokrator recorded their Second Demo "Even Unto The Ends Of The Earth". The soundquality wasn't the best. Later this year Mattias left the band for a year due to studies. On 1999 It didn't happen much this year. A few songs were written by the remaining members. It resulted in "Allhärskare" (2000)Lack of time and travel distances made it hard to rehearse properly so the results were not so good. 2000 This year they wrote and rehearsed the material for "Songs Of Solomon" which they started to record this autumn. 2001 In March Pantokrator made an appreciated concert on the Christian Swedish metal festival called "Bobfest". They also appeared on National TV in a short report from this festival. "Songs Of Solomon" was later released as a self-financed CD-EP. It received good response from media. Now things started to move. "Songs Of Solomon" was also released as a split-CD together with Santifica's "In the Bleak Midwinter" as a result of their contacts with "CL music & publishing" (Rivel records). They also appeared on a compilation-CD (and Video) "Power from the sky". 2002 They wrote and started to record their first fullength album: "Blod" this year. 2003 Once again Pantokrator played on "Bobfest", which also was the release-gig for "Blod". "Blod" recieved great responce from media. For example "The Scandinavian music and media magazine MONSTER" who gave it 4/5 and German magazine "Rock hard", 7/10. Their need for a Second Guitarist was fulfilled through Jonathan Jansson, who joined the band later this year.
REVIEW FOR THE ALBUM(AURUM)
Ah..Christian metal, a genre ridiculed merely for its beliefs. Yes, I'm a Christian, but that has nothing to do with the enjoyment of the music. I'm sure most of the fans that listen to NSBM are not actually Nazi's themselves but they like the music and overcome the lyrical themes. So why is that so hard to do with Christian metal? The answer is that it's not, most people don't give Christian bands a chance. Anyway enough of my justification of Christian metal (sad I even have to...), and on to the music!.
Alright, first off, I'd like to say I'm not big on death metal, except in its progressive or technical forms, but this album is pretty damn good! Its pretty straight-forward death metal. Not too many blastbeats here however. Most of the music is not too fast, and that helps the album.
The atmosphere: these guys create is absolutely crushing! Its pretty damn heavy and the vocals are awesome as well. The vocalist can range from deep growls to raspier screams. The entire band plays their instruments very well and they all shine. From the crushing guitar and bass work, to the brutal growls, and the nice drumming, Pantokrator is a pretty talented band. However, the structures and sound of each song is similar. That does hurt the album the most.
Vocals-This man is great growler. Theres not much else to say. His growls are diverse and, as I said before, range from deep to raspy. They have this breath (for lack of a better word) to them. Some also call it a "smokiness." It helps further the heavy and crushing atmosphere.
Music-The music here is sorta repetitive. Very few guitar solos (a good one on The Order Of Melchisedec). The riffs, again, create a crushing atmosphere. They are very heavy and create an atmosphere of being almost squished and gasping for breath. However, many songs sound the same, and the music lacks a bit of melody. Nevertheless, the music is pretty good and is sometimes memorable.
Emotion-To me, death metal is often a genre with little emotion in its music. Maybe thats on purpose, I can't be sure. But Pantokrator does manage to include some emotion in their music. The album is very intense, quite angry, and sometimes has hints of despair and longing. A good album for those angry or sad days.
Lyrics-The lyrics here are Christian. I won't lie, as a Christian, thats a big plus. Its nice to know that not all Christian bands are cheese-filled power metal bands. The lyrics are sorta poetic and are based off Bible passages. My disappointment is that the band didn't choose to sing about the "darker" parts of the Bible. Like Hell, the "War In Heaven", and the many wars of Israel. Nevertheless, I'm no Bible expert.
Misc.-The production here is sorta muddy. I guess thats the theme in extreme metal. But the guitars are fuzzy to the point that its a detriment to the music. Maybe the production is why all the songs sound similar? But then again, all the other instruments and vocals sound great....
In conclusion, if your looking for some good death metal, you'll like Pantokrator, no matter what religion you are. Its not the best album, but it is pretty satisfactory. Hopefully in the future, this talented band will go on to create a more progressive and melodic album. But for now, this is their finest moment(http://www.holymetalrob.com/)