Deathspell Omega is a French
black metal
Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with tr ...
band formed in 1998 in
Poitiers
Poitiers is a city on the river Clain in west-central France. It is a commune in France, commune, the capital of the Vienne (department), Vienne department and the historical center of Poitou, Poitou Province. In 2021, it had a population of 9 ...
. The group is an anonymous collective that has never confirmed the identity of any of its members.
Their lyrical content often deals with
metaphysical
Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of h ...
Satanism
Satanism refers to a group of religious, ideological, or philosophical beliefs based on Satan—particularly his worship or veneration. Because of the ties to the historical Abrahamic religious figure, Satanism—as well as other religious ...
,
and the philosophies of
Bataille and
Hegel
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a 19th-century German idealism, German idealist. His influence extends across a wide range of topics from metaphysical issues in epistemology and ontology, to political phi ...
.
From 2004 to 2010, the band released a trilogy of concept albums — ''
Si monvmentvm reqvires, circvmspice
The International System of Units, internationally known by the abbreviation SI (from French ), is the modern form of the metric system and the world's most widely used system of measurement. It is the only system of measurement with official st ...
'', ''
Fas – Ite, Maledicti, in Ignem Aeternum'' and ''
Paracletus –'' which focus on the theological aspects of God and
Satan
Satan, also known as the Devil, is a devilish entity in Abrahamic religions who seduces humans into sin (or falsehood). In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, typically regarded as a metaphor for the '' yetzer hara'', or ' ...
. With the band's seventh album ''
The Furnaces of Palingenesia'' (2019), there was a major shift in lyrical focus to anti-authoritarian political themes.
The band's eighth and most recent album, ''The Long Defeat'', was released on 23 March 2022. The band described the album as " the first emanation of the third era of Deathspell Omega".
History
Initially, Deathspell Omega produced raw, traditional black metal akin to
Darkthrone
Darkthrone is a Norwegian black metal band hailing from Kolbotn, Akershus. Formed in 1986 as a death metal band named Black Death, in 1991, Darkthrone transitioned to a black metal style influenced by Bathory (band), Bathory and Celtic Frost and ...
's ''
Transilvanian Hunger''. However, their 2004 release, ''
Si monvmentvm reqvires, circvmspice
The International System of Units, internationally known by the abbreviation SI (from French ), is the modern form of the metric system and the world's most widely used system of measurement. It is the only system of measurement with official st ...
'', marked a change to a more technical, experimental, and well-recorded sound with musical influences including
Russian Orthodox
The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...
chanting and
choral music
A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...
.
The band's work after ''Si monvmentvm reqvires, circvmspice'' was more experimental and technical, with their output in 2005—''
Kénôse'', "Mass Grave Aesthetics" and "Diabolus absconditus"—totaling nearly eighty minutes in length, longer than ''Si monvmentvm reqvires, circvmspice''. The second volume of the band's trilogy, ''
Fas – Ite, Maledicti, in Ignem Aeternum'', was released on 16 July 2007, outside the United States, and the following day within the United States. The band released another EP in January 2009, entitled ''
Veritas Diaboli Manet in Aeternum: Chaining the Katechon''. The final album in the trilogy, ''
Paracletus'', was released by Norma Evangelium Diaboli and
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is an independent record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pa ...
on 9 November 2010. The band's final work related to the trilogy,
an EP titled ''
Drought
A drought is a period of drier-than-normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, ...
'', was released on 22 June 2012.
Deathspell Omega's sixth full-length album, ''The Synarchy of Molten Bones'', was made available early to download and stream on 31 October 2016 with a full physical release on 8 November.
The band's seventh full-length album, ''
The Furnaces of Palingenesia'', was released on 24 May 2019. It is presented as a manifesto from a
dictator
A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute Power (social and political), power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a polity. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to r ...
speaking for a political faction referred to as "the Order"; it is explicitly intended to deconstruct
authoritarian regimes
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and ...
of both the left and the right. The band recorded the album live in a studio using analogue gear, and it was mastered more quietly than most of the band's preceding material, also reflecting a shift in production approach.
Without naming any of their members directly, the band also claimed there was an ideological rift within the band, noting: "A minority of the collective's contributors – shall we say, parts of the second circle – who've been invited to partake because of their incredible talents as musicians are involved with earthly politics, but stand on completely opposite ends of the political spectrum and are therefore irreconcilable political foes. Were it not for dialogue on the grounds of transgressive art, they'd be shooting each other. That tension is what interests us." They also state that the music and lyrics were authored by the "French core of the collective".
This clarification was made in the wake of backlash against Deathspell Omega due to their longtime collaboration with Finnish musician Mikko Aspa, who has released
National Socialist black metal
National Socialist black metal (also known as NSBM or Nazi black metal) is a small movement within the black metal music genre that promotes neo-Nazism, neo-fascism, and white supremacist ideologies. NSBM artists typically combine neo-Nazi im ...
music under the solo project
Clandestine Blaze and has ties to
RAC
RAC or Rac may refer to:
Organizations
* Radio Amateurs of Canada
* RATCH-Australia Corporation, electricity generator
* Refugee Action Collective (Victoria), Melbourne, Australia
* Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, US
* Rent-A-Cent ...
acts.
Band members
There is little to no verifiable information about Deathspell Omega's lineup. They do not have any official website, social media platform or promotional photos, have never performed live and do not list credits in their releases. Early interviews were deeply critical of the black metal scene, and the last interview they agreed to until 2019 was conducted in 2004 by their North American label
The Ajna Offensive, with questions and answers sent through the band's exclusive label, Norma Evangelium Diaboli, to preserve their anonymity.
Finnish musician
Mikko Aspa is the band's current vocalist since 2002.
Hirilorn vocalist Shaxul (Frédéric Sescheboeuf) stated that he was Deathspell Omega's vocalist until 2002, and has gone on record as leaving due to displeasure with the band's shift in themes. In a 2014 interview discussing the most underrated guitarists in metal,
Gorguts
Gorguts is a Canadian death metal band formed near Sherbrooke, Quebec, in 1989. The band has gone through various membership changes since its inception; its only constant member has been guitarist-vocalist and co-founding member Luc Lemay, wh ...
vocalist Luc Lemay named Christian Bouché as Deathspell Omega's guitarist, also giving his pseudonym Hasjarl.
The band contains a drummer, with a band member confirming that the only recordings to use a drum machine were the first four songs on the debut album ''Infernal Battles''.
In a 2018 interview with ''
Loudwire
''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive i ...
'',
Tobias Forge, lead singer of the band
Ghost
In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...
, stated that the French synthwave artist
Carpenter Brut (Franck Hueso) was Deathspell Omega's producer.
Current members
*Khaos – bass (1998–present)
*Christian Bouché – guitar (1998–present)
*Mikko Aspa – vocals (2002–present)
Past members
*Yohann Pasquier - drums (1998–1999)
*Frédéric Sescheboeuf - vocals (1998–2002)
Discography
* ''
Infernal Battles'' (2000)
* ''
Inquisitors of Satan'' (2002)
* ''
Si monvmentvm reqvires, circvmspice
The International System of Units, internationally known by the abbreviation SI (from French ), is the modern form of the metric system and the world's most widely used system of measurement. It is the only system of measurement with official st ...
'' (2004)
* ''
Fas – Ite, Maledicti, in Ignem Aeternum'' (2007)
* ''
Paracletus'' (2010)
* ''The Synarchy of Molten Bones'' (2016)
* ''
The Furnaces of Palingenesia'' (2019)
* ''The Long Defeat'' (2022)
Compilation albums
* ''
Manifestations 2000–2001'' (2008, collection of material originally released on LP on the splits with Moonblood and
Mütiilation
Mütiilation is a French black metal project, traditionally known as a group, but later slimmed to a solo act that consisted solely of founder William "Meyhna'ch" Roussel who maintained activity under the name until its closing in 2017. He late ...
and the ''Black Metal Blitzkrieg'' compilation)
* ''
Manifestations 2002'' (2008, eight previously unreleased tracks, initially written for the ''
Crushing the Holy Trinity'' compilation and a planned split with
Cantus Bestiae)
EPs
* ''
Kénôse'' (2005)
* ''
Veritas Diaboli Manet in Aeternum: Chaining the Katechon'' (2008), standalone release of the band's contribution to the split album with S.V.E.S.T.
* ''
Mass Grave Aesthetics'' (2008), originally released in 2005 on the 'From the Entrails to the Dirt' split.
* ''
Diabolus Absconditus'' (2011), originally released in 2005 on the 'Crushing the Holy Trinity' split.
* ''
Drought
A drought is a period of drier-than-normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, ...
'' (2012)
Split releases
* ''
Clandestine Blaze / Deathspell Omega – Split'' (2001)
* ''Sob A Lua Do Bode / Demoniac Vengeance'' (2001, split LP with Moonblood)
*
Split
Split(s) or The Split may refer to:
Places
* Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia
* Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay
* Split Island, Falkland Islands
* Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua
Arts, enter ...
with
Mütiilation
Mütiilation is a French black metal project, traditionally known as a group, but later slimmed to a solo act that consisted solely of founder William "Meyhna'ch" Roussel who maintained activity under the name until its closing in 2017. He late ...
(2002)
* ''
From the Entrails to the Dirt
''From the Entrails to the Dirt'' is a compilation album released by End All Life Productions, featuring songs by French black metal acts Malicious Secrets, Antaeus, Mütiilation and Deathspell Omega.
The album was first released as a triple vin ...
(Part III)'' (2005, split LP with Malicious Secrets)
* ''
Crushing the Holy Trinity (Part I: Father)'' (2005, V/A LP with
Stabat Mater
The Stabat Mater is a 13th-century Christian hymn to the Virgin Mary that portrays her suffering as mother during the crucifixion of her son Jesus Christ. Its author may be either the Franciscan friar Jacopone da Todi or Pope Innocent III.Saba ...
,
Clandestine Blaze, Musta Surma,
Mgła
Mgła (; ; ) is a Polish black metal band from Kraków, formed in 2000. The duo consists of vocalist, guitarist and bassist M. (Mikołaj Żentara) and drummer Darkside (Maciej Kowalski).
The band has released four albums and began performing l ...
, and Exordium)
* ''Veritas Diaboli Manet in Aeternum'' (2008, split EP with S.V.E.S.T.)
Demos
* ''
Disciples of the Ultimate Void'' (1999)
Compilation appearances
* "Black Crushing Sorcery" on ''Black Metal Blitzkrieg'' (2001,
End All Life Productions
End All Life Productions is a French record label that released many black metal albums in the late 1990s and the 2000s.
Catalogue
See also
* List of record labels
File:Alvinoreyguitarboogie.jpg
File:AmMusicBunk78.jpg
File:Bingola1011b.jpg
L ...
)
Box sets
* Untitled 5LP vinyl box (2009): includes ''Infernal Battles'', ''Inquisitors of Satan'', ''Manifestations 2000–2001'', ''Manifestations 2002'', and the band's side of the split with Clandestine Blaze.
* Untitled 7LP vinyl box (2012): includes ''Si Monumentum Requires, Circumspice'', ''Kénôse'', ''Diabolus Absconditus'', ''Mass Grave Aesthetics'', ''Fas – Ite, Maledicti, in Ignem Aeternum'', ''Chaining the Katechon'', ''Paracletus'', and ''Drought''
References
External links
*
AllMusic biography
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...
MusicMight biography
{{Authority control
French black metal musical groups
Musical groups established in 1998
Season of Mist artists
Musical groups from Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Avant-garde metal musical groups