AN NCS PREMIERE: IMPERIALIST — “BENEATH THE SANDS OF TITAN”

(written by Islander)

The California-based black metal band Imperialist have released two albums so far (Cipher and Zenith), and their third one — Prime — is now set for release by Transcending Obscurity Records on September 5th. We’ve been fortunate to host premieres of music from those first two albums, and are fortunate again to premiere a song from the third one today.

Speaking of good fortune, all three of Imperialist‘s albums have featured tremendous cover paintings that connect with the band’s science-fiction themes, Adam Burke having created the first two and Eliran Kantor devoting his tremendous talents to the new one. Kantor‘s two-panel piece reveals a panorama of intricate detail. Its entire expanse creates a daunting alien vision, but it draws the eye in.

Something similar stands out about Imperialist‘s new music: Their songs are crafted with great attention to detail and executed with eye-popping skill, and they also draw the listener in (often from the very first seconds) and then wholly consume attention with their musical visions while creating a viscerally physical response at the same time.

The song we’re premiering today, “Beneath the Sands of Titan“, is an excellent example of these achievements, and it also seems to connect with the album’s cover art because what Eliran Kantor rendered might indeed be a vision of Saturn’s greatest moon — undergoing a catastrophic event.

In the past, Transcending Obscurity has introduced Imperialist‘s music with comparative references to the traditions of Necrophobic, Dissection, and Sacramentum, with nods to the thrashier dynamics of Aura Noir and Vektor as well. Those same reference points will be useful to newcomers in the case of the Prime, but T.O. also adds Emperor, Valdrin, Frozen Dawn, Abigor, and Immortal.

And now, let’s get right to the song we’re premiering today.

Imperialist open “Beneath the Sands of Titan” with the kind of blazing thrash riffage and engine-like pumping rhythms that will trigger muscle-jumping and neck-bending reflexes among most died-in-the-wool metalheads. And then they bring the demons out — vicious demonic snarls behind the mic, coupled with diabolically swarming, writhing, and pulsating frenzies from the guitars and blast beat-hammering at the drum-kit.

The music stays fast and fiery, but a guitar solo also leaps forward and seizes attention, not only because of its tone and gripping vibrations but also because it introduces a dark and exotic presence, somewhat distraught and somewhat delirious. Somehow the vocals sound even more fanatical and wild, bursting at the seams with savage intensity.

When the hell-for-leather pacing eventually subsides, the threads of feverish distress within the music darken into dismal chords of loss, paving the way for another gripping guitar solo, this one still diabolically exotic and exhilarating but also gloriously weaving across a line between sinister and grieving.

For the finale, Imperialist punch the accelerator again, spurring all the demons into another turbocharged race — fast and intense, heart-pounding and head-hooking, a magnificent frenzy that demonstrates the band’s top-shelf instrumental skills and the high-octane intensity of their songwriting.

IMPERIALIST:
Sergio Soto – Vocals/Lead Guitar
Bryant Quinones – Lead Guitar
Rod Quinones – Drums
Joshua Alvarez – Bass

Prime was mixed and mastered by the great Dan Swanö. T.O. will release it on gatefold vinyl LP, 8-panel digipack CD, cassette tape, and digital formats, with apparel and other merch featuring that tremendous artwork of Eliran Kantor. Check the links below for more info, and then also check out the videos for two previously released songs from Imperialist‘s new album, “Starstorm” and “I A.M.”

PRE-ORDER:
https://imperialistus.bandcamp.com/album/prime
http://transcendingobscurity.aisamerch.com/
http://eu.tometal.com/

IMPERIALIST:
http://facebook.com/Imperialistofficial