In Egyptian mythology, Apep (or Apophis) is the counterpart to the supreme solar god as the embodiment of darkness and chaos. Described as the “Lord of Disorder,” the serpent deity is daily at war with Re. It was believed that the sun itself was Re’s barge, helmed by the scarab-faced god Khepri and guarded by many gods such as Set and the Eye of Re, casting light upon the earth before descending into the underworld and rising from the dead the next day. In line with the common trait in Egyptian religion being man’s invaluable contributions, priests’ daily rituals ensured that Re remained safe and untouched. What happens if Apep ever catches Re? The world would be plunged into darkness and descend into chaos, returned to the primordial waters of Nu.
This apocalypse, the devastation of ma’at, and the iniquity of man are embodied by the German blackened death metal band Apep. Established in 2016 and offering its first full-length in 2020, the formidable The Invocation of the Deathless One, the core palette of no-frills blackened death metal, whose intensity can verge upon war metal periodically, is continued in Before Whom Evil Trembles. Featuring just a dash of desert sands, the sophomore full-length is far from a slump. Rather, it’s characterized by frantic riffs, underworld-ripping vocals, and funereal plodding, utilizing the unequal tuning found in much traditional Arabic music. Sure, Apep may not be world-ending and Re evades capture in Before Whom Evil Trembles, but the battle is an epic one.
Before Whom Evil Trembles by APEP
Of course, it’s unfair that Apep’s release date is a bit too close to comfort to the elephant sphinx in the room: Nile’s The Underworld Awaits Us All. Any death metal band with an Egyptian mythological theme will face this inevitability, as seen in the pigeonholing of acts like Crescent, Scarab, or Maat. The comparison is ultimately unfair, because the unique technicality and brutality of the North Carolina act is its trademark, while Apep’s album deals instead in unhinged groovy wildness akin to Adversarial or later-era Decapitated. The Arabic folk manifests itself most prominently in acoustic interludes (“Wanderers in the Waste,” among others), but that’s far from the star of the show. Tracks like “Enslaving the Putrefied Remnants of the Deceased” and “Before Whom Evil Trembles (Goddess of Carnage)” are all-out assaults, blazing tremolo giving way to chunky riffs while M. Friedrich’s manic drums parade, guided by the gravelly war cries of vocalist C. Fleckeisen. Guitarists O. Pikowski and P. Kühn feature a technicality that injects warfaring madness into “The Pillars of Betrayal” and “Tombs of Eternity”; while firmly planted in the mode of traditional music from the MENA region,1 Apep’s style features a distinct descending quality like Re’s race to the underworld. Tempo is likewise utilized to a devastating degree in these tracks, the slower plods feeling obscenely heavy and climactic to conclude.
While Before Whom Evil Trembles attacks viciously and tastefully ends on a more contemplative note, the earlier tracks pale in comparison, fading away in a heavy blur. Likewise, the vocals can feel loud and monotonous. Fleckeisen is a skilled vocalist, but his growl’s dominance in the mix robs the album of its impact. Similarly, drummer Friedrich most often opts for a punk-inspired blast beat style that adds to Apep’s frantic pace but begins to feel tired when some sections could benefit from blackened speed. Still, the second half of Before Whom Evil Trembles is significantly more dynamic than the first. Apep’s best songs are closers “The Breath of Kheti” and “Swallowed by Silent Sands,” which fuse folk rhythms and melodies with metal, the former’s more playful and dancing rhythms adding to the unhinged mania, while the behemoth latter features more menacing plucking and sprawling patience saturating its ten-minute runtime.
Apep’s Before Whom Evil Trembles feels like a pyramid being dropped on you. It’s a fast and uncompromising riff-fest with just enough Egyptian flair to whisk you away to an ancient world of doomed gods and desolate sands, even if it isn’t always memorable. Although undoubtedly unfair to compare to Nile, Before Whom Evil Trembles lacks the oomph to make the meteoric impact that the German quartet is clearly capable of. Apep is chasing after its own Re, and while Before Whom Evil Trembles is not the serpent capturing the sun, the day draws nearer when the earth will be bathed in chaos.
Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: War Anthem Records
Websites: apep.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/ApepBand
Releases Worldwide: September 13th, 2024
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