Astarte - Demonized (2007)

It doesn't take more than a moment of Demonized to realize that Astarte was shifting gears into a more 'modernized' context. Where their past albums offered a polished and dynamic brew of traditional Scandinavian black metal high on melodies, clean guitar sequences and other rounded techniques, this is basically a transformation into the melodic death metal you'd expect out of Swedish newcomers. That's not to say it's terrible, because surely Tristessa and crew remain competent musicians and writers, and there are still a few leaps back into the blacker climes of their backlog, but it seems quite inconsistent, with a few hyper-energetic, head-smashing features and then a lot of forgettable filler strewn about.

When I say 'melodic death', I'm not necessarily talking about the Slaughter of the Soul, Jester Race style but the more contemporary bands who used that as a base. Lots of escalating axe patterns affixed to bludgeoning, chugging material, with the vocals slightly less black than on the prior albums. The drums hammer along furiously, and there's a clear undercurrent of thrash which often feels like a 'prettier' alternative to the 21st century releases by Holy Moses. Maybe Holy Moses, Hypocrisy and Soilwork in a blender. A few of these tracks, like "Mutter" and "God Among Men", are literally exploding with energy, with almost no means of escaping the frenzied, constantly morphing patterns. They do occasionally blast off into their old turf with tracks like "God I Hate Them All", but the instances are few and far between enough that it's more of a dynamic coincidence than an acknowledgment. There are also a number of tracks with the clean guitars and pianos they used to use for atmosphere (the "Everlast" tracks), but in all honesty they feel too 'inserted 'here.

The cover of Accept's "Princess of the Dawn" isn't so bad, basically a melodic death/thrash translation, though Tristressa runs out of vocal charisma long before Udo would, and it says a lot that this oldie feels instantly more memorable than a number of Astarte's originals. I enjoy the thick, choppy guitar tone used through the rhythms of the album, a good launching point for the various leads and melodies, and the drums are likewise resilient. I suppose those into Marloes' voice from Izegrim, or Angela from Arch Enemy might find themselves in comfortable ground here, but the overall direction seems to me a little trendy, not to mention the songwriting is not the sort that dwells in the memory for long. This wasn't the first departure for the Greeks, as Quod Superius Sicut Inferius and Sirens were also more domesticated than their first two albums, but both of those are superior in retrospect, and though Demonized is not a bad spin for its style, it's the least interesting album they've yet produced, with watered down lyrics and a marginal mall appeal.

Verdict: Indifference [6.25/10] (sacrifice to things unknown)

http://www.myspace.com/astartetristessa

Astarte - Sirens (2004)

Sirens continued to mold Astarte into a more accessible act than their rather nondescript (if competent) earlier works, but not without paying a small price. Always one for appreciating a well endowed gorgon, I'd have to say it's the most attractive record they've released on the surface, but in places it's just an inkling too simple for my tastes, and lyrically it chokes on a number of occasions, though the worst is the exclamation of 'outbreak/motherfucker die!' that enters with the first track, "Dark Infected Circles". That said, there are still a number of positives here which render this fourth full length somewhat more distinct than a Doomed Dark Years or Rise from Within, if only because it doesn't just sound like another band riding on the Scandinavian coattails.

The production, as ever, is a forte, with strong if not standout guitar tones and clear, potent drumming. Much of the album moves at a mid pace, with a lot of open chord riffing threaded with somber, almost folkish melodies. The attraction to the riffs here often reminded me of a few of Rotting Christ's records, so perhaps it's the case that Sirens is the most 'Greek' of the Astarte catalog, though their brand of composition is not wholly comparable. Plenty of double bass and tremolo riffing to go around, but clearly there is a noticeable rise in traditional heavy metal influence that makes the album more appealing to those who don't get on with the more traditional black metal leanings. You still have some tracks, like "The Ring", "Bitterness of Mortality", "Black Mighty Gods" or the bridge of "Oceanus Procellarum" which revert to the pure blast beats and rushed riffing, but these are never the strongest.

Instead, the epic and spacious, restrained songs like "Twist, Nail, Torture" and the tranquil, atmospheric pieces like "Sirens" or "Lloth" (the latter named for the fantasy spider queen, and a former incarnation of Astarte) seem to provide the more compelling fragments of the album. It's fairly well balanced and paced between periods of calm and aggression, and without question the most versatile effort they've recorded, but ultimately not on par with its predecessor Quod Superius Sicit Inferius, upon which the ladies seemed to finally be headed somewhere worth revisiting. Sirens is in no way bad, but it's just not as seductive or hungry as it looks, as the riffs are just never that interesting. Pleasant enough to have on in the background, and perhaps a decent gateway drug if you're trying to turn someone onto more accessible black metal rooted in solid mythological or fantastical concepts, but not all that inspired.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10] (salty beast of naked desires)

http://www.myspace.com/astartetristessa

Astarte - Quod Superius Sicut Inferius (2002)

While it doesn't exactly break the mold established by the prior two Astarte albums, Quod Superius Sicut Inferius exhibited a superior songwriting effort. More versatile and arguably more accessible, there is a depth to the tracks here which was lacking in the colder compositional focus of its precursors, but the fundamental style of melodic black metal is still intact, as was the eye rolling vanity of once again including the ladies in the cover image, this time as a trio of dryad-like beings morphed into a gnarled tree. I still hear traces of Dissection and Immortal in their style, but much of the slower fare here could certainly be estimable to countrymen Varathron or Rotting Christ, so as its verdant face would imply, this was to its day the most 'Greek' of the Astarte releases.

"Reign Unfold" is a pretty close approximation of the previous albums, a glaring charge into the straits of desperation and loss, but immediately forgettable once the clean guitars and pianos of "Inflamed Paradox" roll out a more appreciable, atmospheric procession of archaic delights. I enjoy the faint tints of melody once the black metal chords roll out, and the choirs manifesting in the warlike bridge. Other strong moments include the steady, 8+ minute march of "Oblivious Darkness" with its folk-like melodies woven throughout, the angelic aggression of "Deep Down the Cosmos", and the potent elegance of "In Velvet Slumber". A few of the faster tracks play it safely to the band's roots ("Incarnate Legend of Mummy Queen", and the title track), but I quite prefer it where the band pace themselves at a medium gate and really let the guitars shine. That said, this is unnecessarily long effort, 66 minutes in total, and almost all the songs are substantial at 6-9 minutes in length, most of which could use 30-60 seconds of trim at the least.

The vocals are also pretty bland. Granted, we didn't have a wealth of female fronted black metal bands at the time (we still do not), so I'm sure Astarte weren't attempting to rock the boat all that much, but Tristessa just sounds like any other middle of the road European black metal rasper. The seeming gender neutrality just doesn't work in favor of this music. Where is all the witching potential? The screeching? The gorgon incantations? I would not at all mind if these Greeks flaunted their femininity just a little more in the music itself (we know they will on the covers). Hell, King Diamond is more effeminate than this. Quod Superius Sicut Inferius was surely the product of much effort. Considerable time was spent writing the compositions, and it was instrumentally and stylistically their best album to date. The production values are just as strong, if not stronger, than the first two records, but the triumvirate of sirens still lacked the distinctive characteristics to separate them from the lion's share of accessible European black metal acts. Could use a little more Circe and a little less Hades.

Verdict: Win [7.25/10] (rich with the spoils of time)

http://www.myspace.com/astartetristessa

Astarte - Rise From Within (2000)

I'm not exactly sure why it's taken me so long to come around to the sounds of these Greek sirens, but their first few albums seemed so irrevocably bland when there were so many superior options blowing around Europe in the 90s. Like the debut, Doomed Dark Years, Rise Form Within is a rather well executed album. This is not simply a trio of extremely attractive women, here. It's not a gimmick. They actually perform their material with some degree of professionalism, and their production standards and musicianship could put a lot of their peers to shame. Where they seemed to fall short on these first few outings is just in crafting the memorable, even hymns that resonate long beyond the confines of the listening experience. At its best, Rise From Within only ever feels 'sufficient', never sadistic, sinister or salacious like a number of its obvious Scandinavian influences.

The first track, "Furious Animosity", is one of those instrumentals that probably could have used vocals. It's not atmospheric enough to strike out on its own, and the variation between the straight, charging chord streams and the slower breakdowns with the keys is simply not that compelling. Once they hit the "Rise From Within" tracks, though, they're right back where they left off on Doomed Dark Years. Mid-paced, soaring melodic black metal, with solid, pronounced bass lines, spacious breaks with march-like drums, and keyboards on and off where they felt they'd feel more majestic. Bands like Emperor and Dissection are strong reference points, though the band is not quite so manic and mighty as the first, nor as melodically strong as the second. There are a few decent tunes, like the graceful charge of "Naked Hands" or the Gothic piano inaugurated "Liquid Myth", but beyond producing a wall of sound that seems pleasing and inoffensive to listen to, there's just nothing worth remembering.

The vocals are full and hoarse, but they tend to grow monotonous throughout, as if it's a strain for her just to perform with this voice, never mind threat it with some diabolic emotion. The guitars often start out with a functional network of chords, but then they just go nowhere. The band is skilled at layering its bass and synths so that they possess their own voices against the six-stringers, but they just sort of bludgeon along and harmonize without any intricacy. All this aside, Rise From Within is not a bad album (they've never recorded one to my knowledge), it's just another middle of the pack European black metal disc which safely dwells within the shadows of its predecessors, without stimulating the listener. It seems strangely more subdued than the debut, laconic despite Psychoslaughter's solid drumming. I suppose I'm in the minority that actually prefers their mid-period work to anything else, but not by a large margin.

Verdict: Indifference [6.5/10]

http://www.myspace.com/astartetristessa

Astarte - Doomed Dark Years (1998)

Astarte may or may not have technically been the first 'all-female' black metal act (quotes because the session drummer here was a dude), but they were certainly the first that made any waves, the premiere and reigning Amazons of the Greek scene. That said, the novelty pretty much begins and ends there, because there is nothing explicitly effeminate about Doomed Dark Years, a seasoned and atmospheric debut which frankly does not FEEL like a debut, but hits a few snares along its route in terms of the memorability of its actual songwriting, and its enduring impact (or lack thereof) when placed against any of its Scandinavian predecessors. For here, at least, the harpies have only a passing semblance to their Greek peers.

Doomed Dark Years begins with an spooky, shining prelude of wolves howling and horror attuned keyboards ("Passage to Eternity") before the first true sampling of their black beauty, "Voyage to Eternal Life". This piece alternates between surges of standard riffing and rasps, and the more tortured segues of eloquence in which clean guitars are affixed to the backing chords. Synthesizers are constantly being used to manifest the grandeur of an ancient landscape, and the track reminds me very much of Emperor's In the Nightside Eclipse, though they lack that feverish, diabolical demesne which lurked in the rafters of that masterpiece. Unfortunately, as was often the case in 90s black metal, Astarte don't really know where to quit. They swell their compositions up to lengths that are often 7 or more, and this particular tune ("Voyage to Eternal Life") is over 9 minutes with painfully little to show for it, despite its internal consistency and an admittedly decent production for its day.

The patterns continues into the next piece, "Thorns of Charon - Part I (Astarte's Call)", which has a darker subterfuge in its bleeding streams of melody, and heightened symphonic sequences, but enough to make almost 9 more minutes interest? Negative. Now, not every track on here is quite so open ranged and overgrasping: "Doomed Dark Years" itself is a shorter tune which begins with clean guitars and then explodes into a thundering, moderate blast not unlike what we heard on the previous songs, and the latter "Thorns of Charon" movements ("Emerge from Hades" and "Pathway to Unlight") round out their 7 minute existences with slightly stronger riffing, still reminiscent of Emperor though the keyboard orchestration is never so menacing. But even these, and "Empress of the Shadow Land" have too many moments of repetitious indifference to really stand out unless you're simply seeking a desolate, driving landscape which feeds off its own, middling melancholy.

But it makes for a pretty, penetrating light, at least. The album sounds lush, due to the balance of the guitars and keyboards, and the vocals are harsh as fuck, like a more throaty Ihsahn with only a small disclosure of its originator's gender (if you listen very closely). This debut has come down a lot in estimation for me over the years, becoming marginally less exciting with each listen, and I feel that they've surpassed this several times since. However, Doomed Dark years knows its business, delves into the Greek mythological backdrop that I so often want these bands to explore, and even if the music and lyrics are not ultimately magnificent, it's convincing enough to prove that black metal, like its parent and peer sub-genres, is not solely a man's realm.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10] (weep no more for them)

http://www.myspace.com/astartetristessa