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Behemoth’s first album, Sventevith (Storming Near the Baltic), is a far cry from the metal titans you’re so familiar with today. Completely eschewing death metal (that’s farther along in the evolutionary phase), this continues the pagan sound that started with ...From the Pagan Vastlands and culminated later in the legendary Grom. Extremely rough recording (though vastly clearer than ...From the Pagan Vastlands) actually helps an album such as this, I believe, as the primal feeling and ferocity is enforced by the misty, hauntingly ethereal tone of the recordings. While I felt the recording in FtPV was somewhat limiting, Sventevith... is like viewing a bloody battle in a forest heavy with snowfall. I’m also a sucker for Behemoth’s use of acoustics (in any album), as it lends a very distinct Eastern flavor, which simultaneously sounds very ancient and powerful. The vocals are a much higher-pitched growl than Behemoth fans will be used to, but again, this is black metal through and through. 45 minutes of haunting music here, folks, but only for those whose aural palettes have enough acquired taste to truly grasp the intricacy and haunting minimalism of real black metal. The MTV, Mall Metal, and Kerrang! kids have no hope of enjoying this, as I don’t think there’s enough useless posturing or petty one-note ‘br00tal’ breakdowns for those posers. This is true beautiful cult metal for those who know their guns, and nobody else. I would recommend Grom more for the full impact of this style, but Sventevith... is a close second.
| Tracklist |
| 1. Chant of the Eastern Lands |
| 2. The Touch of Nya |
| 3. From the Pagan Vastlands |
| 4. Hidden in a Fog |
| 5. Ancient |
| 6. Entering the Faustian Soul |
| 7. Forgotten Cult of Aldaron |
| 8. Wolves Guard My Coffin |
| 9. Hell Dwells in Ice |
| 10. Transylvanian Forest |
: 45:26
| Buy other Behemoth albums |
