First Black Pope - Excommunication

You know, whenever I think of the pope anymore, I always think of that really nice fellow Francis who we see performing all kinds of nice deeds on the news and what not, and is definitely not a man of sin. However, I do believe that First Black Pope is changing my mindset as to when I think of the Pope. Not because they challenge the views of the Bishop of Rome, but just because they share the same title and are much, much more interesting to me. While it's sad to say that you won't find any of the band members wearing a Mitre, you can expect a blend of harsh beats powered by angry synths and an even angrier gentleman at the helm of the vocals.

The harsh EBM act consists of three people: Skar who does the vocals as wll as the programming, Templez on keys, and Macho adding in the drums and guitar. Combined together, this Italian threesome has a lot going on for them. Ever since 2004, when their track which was remixed by Fucking Bastard and selected for release on Cryonica Tanz V.3, these guys have been growing in name.

To add onto their reputation, they've opened for other bands such as Das Ich, Kirlian Camera, Inertia, and other known acts. They're also toured with acts such as Angels & Agony, Hocico, and even Unter Null. To say it lightly, these guys are giving this project all they got and, their music combined, it's paying off.

And I say that because their late 2013 release on Advoxya Records, Excommunication proves my previous words. It all begins off with Final Solution, an introduction into this sordid Hell that I traveled through. The background synths make for a slow pace, but the underlying electronics push it faster. The evil sounding vocals help push the song forward, and the creepy samples that say, "Oh, did I hurt you? Die." just adds onto the flavor.

Getting into a dancey territory, Messiah pumps out a faster rhythm with vocals that are more whisper like. The chorus was adorable, and made me want to get up and dance as the beat filled my ears and provided me with a form of ecstasy.

Plastic Nursery chilled it out some, laxing a bit, but did not hold back with the quality. The synth work was odd, and almost sounded as if a siren was going off amidst the EBM beat that held as a bassline.

Baptized in Blood offers such lovely song title with a still nice sounding and strong beat that doesn't crap out by far. The title track includes even more lovely synth work and sort of reminded me of Messiah. Or, at least a follow up to it.

I think The Curse was the most bass heavy song up to this point. Though the creative electronic energy still permeated through the atmosphere, it was the strong drops that caught my attention with this one.

Slow Death brought on another fast paced track that you could definitely find playing in a club at some point, while Psychic Secretions once more took a step down, the slower defined song allowing each pulse to hit you auditory senses.

Black Body Radiation mainly stood as an instrumental aside from the occasional line reading out the title of the song. It provided some body to the song, but the lyrics weren't all too necessary; I think this would have of faired just fine as an instrumental.

Repentant had the best intro on the album thus far. Offering drum work amongst ambience, creating a sort of war like tune, it slowly built into a great song with the drums as the focal point. It was different from the rest, and turned out to be one of my favorites.

Artificial Void was the second to last song on the album, with music that overpowered the lyrics. Somehow, that worked in favor of the artists, and more lovely synth work came along with the track.

The twelth and last song finally rang its bell. And what's a better way to go out than with a collaboration with Ira-K Organisation, the Italian industrial and rhythmic noise project that I adore oh-so much. The song had slightly different vocals compared to the rest, and the beat was certainly a bit more harsh and distinct. Nice job. Well done.

And, after all is listened to and heard, I come out of this unholy massacre with a pleasant taste on my tongue and a bit more of a blackened soul. I did feel a bit of a drag sometimes, as some songs felt too similar to others, and I wasn't quite able to say what made them so different from one another, but, still, this was a fun album. I still say they need to a don a mitre to be a real pope (And that would also be quite humurous), but I can have some horrible ideas at times that I think are great. Nonetheless, take a look at these guys for yourself; you won't regret it. Jul 01 2014