Dekadent are a wonderful band. They are not known at all, sadly, but make superb music that is truely unique. Their debut (Manifestation of Seasonal Bleeding) and latest release share musical interests – Deliverance of the Fall (which I shall later review) is extremely different, for these purposes it probably won’t be referenced much, other than to say I don’t really mind that Dekadent chose their old sound again, as I love how unique it is too.
Venera : Trial and Tribulation is Dekadent back to their heavy-ass routes...but still with dynamics that I’ve never heard anywhere else, and to be quite frank, hope stays true only to Dekadent as they are such masters of their creation. I think one of the most important things about their sound is it’s light...not in a heaviness sense, in that respect they are pretty damn heavy. One means to say that they are not as dark as a lot of black metal bands...I’d almost say this is “positive” black metal...whereas so much black metal seems to be so dark – particularly in the underground (though I understand why, it doesn’t mean it should exclusively be so).
The opening track is a good example of this; Thralldom Decree. Not only are the growled vocals raw, gritty, and intense, but there are also clean vocals that help keep the song extremely emotional and personal. Raided I feel continues this theme, and this album as a whole flows far better than Manifestations and I feel is listenable as a single album – in one sitting – something I struggled to do with Manifestation. The only thing I struggle with is the pure intensity of this album – as I said it’s very personal...and when the piano comes in on Raided I feel a sense of empathy towards the lyrics and..though the sound is positive, it conveys the desperation and sorrow in the song extremely well.
The lyrics are something to be proud of. Dekadent write impressive lyrics. They are extremely good at depicting a situation or story that works well with the music, rather than a lot of bands whom seem to compromise lyrical content in order to satisfy a songs need. This is down right wrong.
There are faster songs too on this album, which makes nice variation when listening to it. Day of Solice and Beutiful Fire for example are ferocious tracks – they are monsters in speed...but they still have good interplay. Day of Solace for example see’s a lot more symphonic use compared to the other songs, but opens extremely with speed, and returns to it not so long after a small interlude. This is well contrasted by In Pulchritude Adorned which almost sounds like a love songs in some respects – it’s a powerful song about self-discovery and self-empowerment and I think it’s well displayed through the tempo and construction of the song.
Two of the more interesting songs are Providential Love and Sunday’s Lament (which are conveniently tracks 8 and 9 respectively) . The previous has creative guitar work that has a definite groove edge to it, that almost doesn’t fit in to Dekadent’s sound, but works purely due to it’s careful placement and occasional rather than constant use. Sunday’s Lament is interesting purely for the drumming – it’s impressive stuff for a small Slovenian band.
This album is something that should make the band pat themselves on the back. They’ve managed to survive the great pressure and shadow built upon by their symphonic masterpiece – The Deliverance of the Fall – and come out stomping high with pride and dignity – no selling out, no change of values...this is black metal with liberal values at it’s purest and, by far, most beautiful.
9/10
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