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VERITAS DIABOLI MANET IN AETERNUM: CHAINING THE KATECHON

Deathspell Omega

Tech/Extreme Prog Metal


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Deathspell Omega Veritas Diaboli Manet In Aeternum: Chaining the Katechon  album cover
4.84 | 39 ratings | 7 reviews | 74% 5 stars

Essential: a masterpiece of
progressive rock music

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Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, released in 2008

Songs / Tracks Listing


1. Chaining the Katechon (22:12)

Total Time 22:12

Line-up / Musicians


N/A

Releases information

Released as a Digipak MCD by NoEvDia and distributed through Southern Lord Records. Also available as a split record with S.V.E.S.T.

Thanks to Jake Kobrin for the addition
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DEATHSPELL OMEGA Veritas Diaboli Manet In Aeternum: Chaining the Katechon ratings distribution


4.84
(39 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(74%)
74%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(13%)
13%
Good, but non-essential (8%)
8%
Collectors/fans only (0%)
0%
Poor. Only for completionists (5%)
5%

DEATHSPELL OMEGA Veritas Diaboli Manet In Aeternum: Chaining the Katechon reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by Conor Fynes
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars 'Chaining The Katechon' - Deathspell Omega (10/10)

Deathspell Omega is a band that has had the same effect on me that only a few others like , Opeth, Blotted Science and Voivod have had on me earlier in my life; they have effectively changed the way I look at metal. With Deathspell in particular, they demonstrated to me how far the black metal style could be pushed forward. and ever since, their modern classic of controlled madness 'Fas, Ite - Maledicti, In Ignem Aeturnum' has been one of my top favourites. Naturally, I was spurred to listen to as much Deathspell Omega as I could after hearing how incredible these guys are, and while their earlier output certainly does not have the same impact on me as does the later, I do consider them to be a remarkably consistent band, and absolute innovators. Leave it to a band like this then to create an EP that leaves my jaw dropping.

'Chaining The Katechon' (also known in longform as 'Veritas Diaboli Manet In Aeturnum: Chaining The Katechon') is a single song EP that lasts twenty minutes long. Much like a progressive epic, this is a single suite of complex composition where Deathspell Omega brings their greatest elements to the table; their darkly philosophical and disturbing lyrical content, their madly technical and dissonant performance standard, and that pleasant sensation of having one's soul torn open and having hell pour in, you know, the sort of atmosphere that only a band like DSO could foster. Despite merely being an EP, this is wildly challenging music, and there are enough musical layers and ideas to keep a listener busy for weeks. 'Chaining The Katechon' begins abruptly, jumping straight into a barrage of musical fury and Deathspell Omega's trademark rasps. Beginning an epic without any flowery build up introduction is startling, but it works so well; there is not a second on the epic that seems meant to fill up the disc time.

While 'Fas' was an album intentionally void of much in the way of 'beauty', there are actually some melodies this time around, although not nearly enough to make the band any more accessible. For the most part, this is a continuation of the sound on the band's fourth album, but in between bouts of madness and technical loops, there are parts here where some melodies from the guitars are allowed to escape from the wall of sound and be heard. Most times, these melodies aren't beautiful in the traditional sense, but when compared to the very ugly and complex fury that Deathspell Omega is used to churning out, it is a really welcome change of pace.

The guitars all feel dissonant and out-of-tune, so it becomes so surprising that Deathspell Omega is able to craft some massively powerful grooves with them. More than a few times here, Deathspell changes up their tempo and allows for a slower, but still intense aggression that is sure to get heads banging along, despite the avant-classical sensibility here that would make one think this was purely music to sit down and carefully analyze. This is indeed music to feed the intellect, but that doesn't mean to say that there aren't parts here that will get the listener fueled as well.

One last thing I will mention about the album are the vocals. As one could have guessed, the rather standard rasps here are the least impressive thing that Deathspell Omega goes for on 'Chaining The Katechon', but I have found it strangely poignant and interesting that no matter how intense and complex the instrumentation and music gets, the vocals maintain their reserved stance, rasping away, but rarely letting loose. The strength of having the vocals in this music are obviously for the lyrics- which are common to go into bouts of archaic Latin- and while they may be mixed just a little too highly compared to the rest of the sound, these dismal rasps only compliment the dark atmosphere that the band crafts here.

'Chaining The Katechon' is easily one of the most profound EPs I have ever heard, not only in black metal, but in my experience with any music. There is more than enough musical depth here to be worth the same concentration that a full-length album would warrant, and no matter how many listens I put into this thing, I always seem to be hearing new things in it.

Review by siLLy puPPy
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR PSIKE, JRF/Canterbury, P Metal, Eclectic
5 stars After the groundbreaking milestone of black metal complexities delivered by DEATHSPELL OMEGA with its lauded "Fas ? Ite, Maledicti, in Ignem Aeternum," the band released two EPs before concluding the trilogy of albums that ended with "Parcletus" with themes that focused on the highly advanced Satanic theology inspired by the philosophies of George Bataille, Michel Leiris and Pierre Klossowski but then again pretty much everything this band unleashes on to the world is about those topics so in reality makes little difference how you approach them from a chronological point of of view.

The EPs "Mass Grave Aesthetics" and VERITAS DIABOLI MANET IN AETEMUM: CHAINING THE KATECHON were both released on 8 December 2008 however VERITAS was released both as an EP and as a split with the other French black metal band S.V.E.S.T. (stands for Satanas Vobiscum et Spiritum Tuo) which i suspect may have been DEATHSPELL OMEGA's side project as a pseudonym because stylistic approaches and especially vocal style are suspiciously similar.

The DEATHSPELL OMEGA EP consists of the sole track "Chaining The Katechon" which refers to a New Testament term used to describe the one who prevents the rise of the Antichristand therefore stopping the second coming of Christ. The track clocks in just over 22 minutes but features the classic jaw dropping characteristics of the band's Satanic trilogy that were instrumental in taking black metal into a much higher level of philosophical and progressive credibility.

Laced with the hallmark dissonant jangle guitar riffs and the transmogrifications from creepy slow tempos to buzzsaw blastbeat fueled black metal fury, CHAINING THE KATECHON essentially served as an intermission between the final two chapters of the Satanic trilogy but was every bit as intricately designed and fueled with some of the scariest combinations of sound that have ever haunted the metal universe. Ranging from Meshuggah-like swells of dissonant metallic passages to moments of Orthodox choir chanting, CHAINING THE KATECHON excels in conjuring up demons and dwells on dreadful sounding progressive black metal with the complexities leagues above the competition.

While DEATHSPELL OMEGA has been far from what one would call a melodic black metal band, the fact that scant melodic passages are inserted into the works ensures that just enough hooks keep the listener intrigued enough to prevent them from losing their minds as the atonal jagged guitar riffs chug along with creepy atmospheres and top notch precision percussive workouts. Mikko Aspa's unmistakable vocal style dominates the chilling soundscapes with raspy declarations of darkened ideologies but finds more moments on VERITAS to offer clean narrative proses that add to the overall diverse rotisserie of progressively infused weavings of stylistic shifts.

While very much in the ghoulish spirit of the Satanic trilogy which bookmarks this EPs place in the overall canon, VERITAS DIABOLI MANET IN AETEMUM: CHAINING THE KATECHON more than stands up on in its own in the near indescribable freakery that DEATHSPELL OMEGA is capable of crafting. The beauty of this one is that it feels more like a condensed version of the longer albums where certain segments are truncated and serves as a sampler for those brave enough to dip into this band's world of terrifying and horrific sonic assaults. This sole track is for sure one of the band's finest moments and a mandatory extension of the brilliant triumvirate that remains the band's finest hours.

Latest members reviews

5 stars We saw your image... The gap of your eyes and mouth is void... Quite possibly the greatest metal song ever made? Chaining The Katechon was my first exposure to Deathspell Omega and their insane use of instrumentation leaves even bands like Dream Theater or Meshuggah behind. Their fast paced a ... (read more)

Report this review (#2698400) | Posted by Nhelv | Tuesday, March 8, 2022 | Review Permanlink

5 stars The best death metal song ever made? While it's clear that Deathspell Omega are already a consistent and brilliant band, they didn't have a crowning achievement until they released "Veritas Diaboli Manet In Aeternum", AKA, Chaining The Katechon. Without a doubt one of the most quintessential t ... (read more)

Report this review (#2578838) | Posted by Gorgut Muncher | Wednesday, July 14, 2021 | Review Permanlink

5 stars The definition of brutality. A technical cocktail of all the best elements of Death Metal, Chaining The Katechon is Deathspell Omega's best track to date and one of their most ambitious and bold, this is saying a lot considering how consistent and proficient this band is. The last ten minutes are ... (read more)

Report this review (#2578830) | Posted by Isaac Peretz | Wednesday, July 14, 2021 | Review Permanlink

5 stars So, this will be more of a track review, mainly because this EP has only one track, but this track is 22 minutes, so it makes slight sense. This EP is a rather interesting one. This is actually a split EP between the band S.V.A.S.T., but oddly enough I can't find the other half of the EP. So ... (read more)

Report this review (#1018617) | Posted by arcane-beautiful | Wednesday, August 14, 2013 | Review Permanlink

5 stars Ever since Si Monumentum Requires Circumspice, which appeared five years ago, Deathspell Omega have taken a path that only the bravest take; a more avant-garde and progressive approach on the codes and norms of black metal, a musical sub-genre that is recognized for its lo-fi cacophony and sat ... (read more)

Report this review (#227576) | Posted by Kenosis_Theorician | Sunday, July 19, 2009 | Review Permanlink

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