Lost Review Domain

Reviews for Emperor - Prometheus - The Discipline of Fire and Demise:

User Reviews:

Your Review:

HAIL!
Well...the mighty EmperoRs spltted.
They'll never release an album anymore; we are not going to see them live anymore.

I hoped EmperoR would have retourned to the sounds of "In the Nightside..", but it is not. I've listened to Prometheus one thousand times and I still don't know whether it is a masterpiece or a true SHIT!

So... i gave it an 8.

Review by: darksomepoet

With the greatest interest I waited for this creation as on official site of EMPEROR it is declared, that it is their last album. Would be silly to search something similar on "In the Nightside Eclipse". It entirely and completely creation of Ihsahn. Samoth it is declared here only as an additional guitar. Neoclassic structures in the vein of PECCATUM combined here with aggression of "IX Equilibrium". It is a pity, certainly, that ÅMPEROR have lost an atmosphere of the early albums, but nevertheless, "Prometheus" is a product demanding repeated listening. In my opinion the best song "In the Wordless Chamber". ÅMPEROR has died, long live EMPEROR!

Review by: morkh

Alot of people dont like this album, but I think it sounds fucking great!!! ok...no... its not their best stuff, but this album just fucking rules! and once again the sound quality is excellent!

Review by: chemicalmind

Since I have been living out of my home country for quite some time now, I had to pick this CD up there, where I'm living now in stead of at my awesome local shop, so I might have got it a little bit later than possible, because here in Italy they don't have the CD's that quickly as in Holland. But I think I have had this CD for almost a month now and from the second (no, it wasn't the first) time I listened to it, I was quite sure that this would be the best CD I had ever heard before and that I would probably would ever hear in my entire life, thinking I'll be alive for another 60 years. The strange thing about then, when I heard the album for the second time, was, that I still wasn't able to enjoy it. I know this sounds really strange, but after a month I can say that this album is so incredibly complex that it actually is impossible for someone to love it from the beginning. Of course you already feel what I'm about to say, because you can all figure that this album is indeed the way I thought it would be. I have such a strong feeling that nobody in the next 60 years will create a record that is actually better than Emperor's latest and final.
As I already stated before, this CD is one that is very complex. Some melodies are so long (first melody in "Grey") that you start thinking you will never be able to understand, let alone to know it by heart. But once you do know who it works, it all comes together and you end up with a feeling that is just unbeatable (not unbearable!). I have to say that not every song is as brilliant as "Depraved", "Grey" and "Thorns On My Grave" (extreme!!!), but the others are extremely great as well. Of course, but one has already understood that, Emperor do not sound even close to albums like "In The Nightside Eclipse" and "Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk". They are by far not as dark anymore, but something else and I really don't know what it is, has taken the place of this feeling of darkness that apparently makes me feel even better! If you are a non-openminded black metal fan, you would probably don't like this album at all, but I HAVE discovered one true "true" black metal melody that makes shiver from head to toe. You can find it in the song "Grey" and if I'm not mistaken it's the third melody you hear, but whatever... Find it out for yourselves! The song "Thorns On My Grave" also has some breathtaking "old" melodies and drums are really going very fast during this song. But actually every song on this brilliant album has its own amazing part or atmosphere.
Finally I want to emphasize the fact that this CD is only meant for those who can stand extreme music (because Emperor is still not for pussies), for those who are patient with getting to know the CD, for those who know what music is about and especially for those (and this might sound a bit arrogant) who have the capacity to really analyse the songs. If you belong to the group of people that I just described, you are one hell of a lucky person, because then Emperor has released by far the best album ever made, that will only be beaten when you are already dead. Until then... Enjoy this beautiful piece of art!

Review by: Hakkende Harry

EMPEROR – Prometheus – The Discipline Of Fire & Demise
(Candlelight Records)
The most creative, dark, intelligent and by far the best black metal band ever returns to the scene with what is already their fourth full-length album. Unfortunately Ihsahn, Samoth and Trym decided to call it quits, consequently this record should be considered as their farewell present to the black hordes. I doubt they’re will ever be a worthy replacement so the Norwegian demons will surely be missed. Fans of Emperor should know by now to never expect the same music twice because this band is constantly trying to evolve and to be as groundbreaking as possible. This theory is again well demonstrated on “Prometheus – The Discipline Of Fire And Demise”. I’ll try not to go on about the fact that this album will never top the two classics “Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk” and “In The Nightside Eclipse” (how do you compete with childhood memories?) but at least Emperor’s trying to create something different and isn’t repeating itself all the time by just following the formula that made them famous worldwide. And believe me this really is a release that will surprise you. Speaking in Emperor terms it’s rather slow and mid-paced, not too many blast beats are present, especially not in the first tracks. When I say ‘slow’, don’t think of My Dying Bride, the music is just more varied and not at ‘grind’ speed all the time. No, instead, they offer you an opus that is the result of the tremendous creative overflow Ihsahn has to deal with. The compositions do not really sound like a band effort anymore to me though. The production and musical abilities are absolutely kicking; I just think these tracks are maybe a bit too much focused on Ihsahn’s own musical preferences. More than once his other band Peccatum comes to mind (just listen to the opening of “The Eruption”) as well as parts that remind me of his other side-project Thou Shallt Suffer. This album is again filled with that magical, elusive and dark atmosphere especially the first two records were full of. Especially Ihsahn’s twin vocal attacks add a lot to these darkened moods the music creates. The band (or should I say Ihsahn) used its musical genius on this one to incorporate even more different influences : fast black metal, epic passages, slow and horrifying parts, film and classical elements, progressive jazz and (not to forget) some really heavy death metal as well (this is were Samoth’s musical tastes shine through). The combination of a fast black metal riff with death metal-like guitar parts on top of it in the song “Empty” sounds a bit bizarre and at the same time astonishing and heavy with a capital h. Everything is again woven together by weird and complex arrangements but still most of the compositions are pretty catchy and get in your head quickly. That’s also thanks to the great sound that clearly crushes the one of the earlier efforts. You’ll need some listening sessions though before getting to the bottom of it all. To me “Prometheus” is better than its preceder “IX Equilibrium” and a good ending of an extremely good career. This album could be seen as a film with the Emperors being the auditory cinematographers. A sort of horror show soundtrack is what’s created here. Perfect example of this hypothesis is the song “The Prophet” that starts off with Ihsahn’s beautiful clear vocals, followed by ferocious Morbid Angel lunacy. A terrifying bridge clusters everything together and the track ends with the opening theme making it very coherent. That’s the strongest point of this album : everything very much flows together making it all sound as a whole, although you need some time to discover this. I still have to mention song 7 “In The Wordless Chamber”, THE perfect example of epic metal and reminiscent of the band’s ‘Anthems’ era. “The Tongue Of Fire” even incorporates (mandatory) dramatic King Diamond-like vocals (including some high shrieks) and a midsection reminding me of Dream Theater while “He Who Sought The Fire” has some excellent black metal riffery ala old Immortal or Enslaved plus John Petrucci harmonies. I felt quite relieved when the disc was finally over because it’s not easy to capture everything right away but being the evil motherfucker I am, I just pushed the play button once again and let terror reign! These guys just beat the crap out of you and your Cradle shirt-wearing buddy and redefine the genre once known as ‘symphonic black metal’. Over the years Emperor have become a sub-genre on their own and this album is the perfect testimony of their brilliant career. RIP

My marking : 9.5/10
Lyrics : “Teach me the tongue of fire so that I may set the world ablaze. For it is cold and this blindness can no longer give me shelter. Teach me the tongue of fire so that I may cry out loud my wrath and my passion or else my coil will blister and decay.”

Review by: Jense

Hail Hakkende Harry , he knows EXACTLY what the record is about ...its essentailly the swansong of the greateat Black metal band of all time, forget about their "old" records..they have NEVER been a band to stick to one formula and ppl who moan that they have changed are talking Shit..Emperor have never been a band to copy their last record. Prometheus is Staggeringly good..words fail me to describe just how fucking amazing the record is. People who are and have been into Emperor just know how enormous this band have been, they have single handedly conquered the 90's with 3 records and this is the end. This record WILL be remembered and hailed as long as metal is alive. Hail Emperor, May they return to us again some day.

Review by: carcass_alex

this is the end of a megalomaniacal dream. the emperor had call it a day. well it boils down to one consuming ecstatic album filled with transcendental nightmare evoken by the brains of emperor, the wizard ihsahn. motherfucker just blew it all away with this last ditch to forcefed the blackmetal world with grand madness. maybe this is what ihsahn tried to evoke but emperor is a blackmetal band not a puppet like ihsahn is trying to mould. i salute all his efforts though samoth and trym should never be forgotten with their contributions on this greatest blackmetal prophets that walk on earth. the album i must admit kills not for the average black metal orc but for the existentialist darkened soul. talking of prometheus and his demise reminds me of shelleys prometheus unbound great masterpiece for the black emperors. a goddamn fireworks blazing to bid adieu to the metal world. long live the black emperors.hail.....

Review by: jeurus

EMPEROR : PROMETHEUS - THE DISCIPLINE OF FIRE & DEMISE (2001)
Released on Candlelight Records.

Despite for what I have said about this album whilst reviewing "IX Equilibrium" I review it again. I can't believe that Emperor is gone. And for thorns on my grave, the ending wasn't what I quite expected. It's ugly and musically totally stupid idea of mixing different styles together. With jazz, blues and what not they've destroyed the Leading Element that was held within all the previous albums; the strength.

There are only couple of songs that I like; "Eruptions", "In the Wordless Chamber" and "Thorns on My Grave". There's nothing that the old material had and that's why I don't give a shit about this album. The fact is, that Emperor's legacy was coldbloodedly destroyed when this album was destroyed. The best way to end a beautiful career like Emperor had, is to end it in "Emperial Live Ceremony". A live album that declares the loss of Emperor. Perfect ending.

Music is lame and the lyrics aren't Emperor. Ihsahn's clean(er) vocals are heard more often on this album than on any other. Listen to "The Prophet" (probably the worst song from this), there he stretches his vocals. Songwriting sucks, and so does many other things on this album.

I don't like this piece at all. Emperor could have done M U C H better. Fuck they've messed their totally clean discography with such a shitty album like this. Dot.

Music - 72
Lyrics - 78
Playing - 82
Singing - 81
Sound - 89

Overall - 80 out of 100.

Review by: Punisher

fuck, i just do not understand thid guy punisher. he says that album is crap and than gives 8/10 to the album. I think that the album is phenomenal! no one in the entire metal, and specially black metal (call it whatever you want) scene is not capabel to write an album like this....this a true masterpiece and an album for all times....

Review by: prometheus

Good album but sounds way too much like Peccatum (who I also like). I heard Samoth and Trym recorded their parts then went on tour with Zyklon, Ihsahn finished the rest of the album by himself. What a waste of the bands combined talents. Nowhere near as good as In The Nightside Eclipse or Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk. 6.5 out of 10 as i expected more from Emperor.

Review by: deathshandbag

very funny band, lots of people think this stuff is original
but so many have been doing this kind o crap for years and years! quality of the players is very lacking,its not at all
like u read in magazines of their greatness- just dont see
it, they remind me of like the THOR of a new generation-----
horrible song lyrics very juvinile and repetitive jargon!
a complete waste of time and money----oh yeah all the pictures of these goofballs with guns is very pathetic!
destroying the minds of complete loser followers! trend setters indeed!

Review by: jizzyfart

Total SHIT, total fucking SHIT. Nothing interesting, much noise little music. If you like Unholy Black Metal then burn or break this cd in stores, not even listen to it.

Review by: jarek

If Unholy Black Metal are bands like Antaeus or Diabolicum then that is not even music, even less Black metal. Not pure fucking armageddon but more purefucking noise shit played by untallented depressed assholes.

P.S. - This album is great, Hail to all those who can still move their eye balls and see in more than one direction

Review by: killerkode

it's not black metal. it's progressive. it sounds like peccatum...not to say don't get it, it just may not be a black metal fans cup of tea.

Review by: frostdemonstorm

prometheus albunm = the lament of the emperor!!!

Review by: bayu_fl

i maybe sound untrue but i think this is the best album of emperor. but.... i only got : in the nightside eclipse and anthems to the welkin at dusk but still i think prometheus is for more superiour....

Review by: sven

So many people have written Emperor off. And how could you not after they pretty much wrote the black metal scene's only credible albums until 1997? True enough, I feel that IX Equilibrium was a slip from grace but I still love it more than 99 per cent of the other non-Emperor black metal albums out there today.

Prometheus is such a strong album that I almost forget how to use the English language when talking about it. The opening track, "Eruption" is so catchy that it just overwhelms the listener into a symphonic orgasm. The opening strings alone make this album worth the $17.99 I paid.
"Depraved" is the only weak track on the album in my opinion but I still listen to it because it links directly the opening track.
"Empty" is special. It makes me remember the days of Anthems to the Welkin At Dusk so reverently and it even takes me back to a time when I actually liked Metallica.
"The Prophet" is so weird. It has these keyboards that are so progressive in the end. Many times I was thinking to myself, "Where the hell did Ihsahn come up with this idea?" during that one song alone. The Slayer style mid-section of the song makes for a great head banging session and it feeds me until I am full then just stops.
"The Tongue Of Fire" is Emperor's most catchy song ever. At the same time, I was overwhelmed by the musicainship of the song. Ihsahn gives a vocal performance that is only rivaled by his work on "Thus Spake the Nightspirit" and "Of Blindness and Subsequent Seers".
"In the Wordless Chamber" reminds me of Star Trek with the keyboard usage but Trym's drumming reminds me that this is not for movies but for metal heads to bang to.
"Grey" is just plain unstoppable. It has this "horror movie" music during the first and third break that is amazingly achieved without the usage of keyboards. They do kick in, but the effect of using only two guitars and drums to create the most atmosphere the album really sees, would almost seem unheard of in an Emperor attempt until you actually pay attention.
"He Who Sought the Fire" is a great fast paced stop and go song. It does begin to feel repetitive after a few listens but it gets my head banging and gives me a chance to get a breather before I bang my head again. The keyboards are so sublimal that upon the first few listens, you will think they are not noteworthy. Give it a few more spins and you will begin to hear all kinds of things you did not hear the first thirty listens.
What can I even say about "Thorns on My Grave" that can express how depressing yet fitting this song is. This is my favorite track on the album because it is brutal and fast. It slays right off the band and in a way that the opening track does, it overwhelms you. Yet this is not melodic in anyway, it kicks the holy shit out of you. Ihsahn was out to prove that Emperor were out for blood with the last song and the blood they searched for was their own. The keyboards are also very, VERY noteworthy. They start out behind then speed in front of Trym's inhuman drumming and then finally swirl around the rest of the music as if dancing to its own song. This is the best Emperor song ever! It creates the atmosphere of a brutal death. A sacrifice. It just screams of the end of the most precious thing ever. Then, it ends, and so does the album. This is where the depression begins. It hurts to realize this brutality placed upon my ears will never be experienced live. That hurts!

The only complaint I really have about this album is that it does not have the same sound quality of Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk. I believe that many "Nekro" loser metal heads will let this album pass right over their heads (as it probably should since their heads are up their own "more nekro than you" ass) since the sound quality is the best Emperor ever had. I think you have to give this album around 50 listens on a great quality stero to understand what seperates this album from almost everything black metal has produced that did not have the name Emperor on it. This album is just as demanding (if not more-so) than their earlier work just on a different level. Also, imagine if this exact same album came out by a band not named Emperor... that band would be deemed the new "kings" of black metal. Take the weight of their previous albums off this album and you may realize that this album has just as much quality.

Buy this album? Bet your ass! The best black metal album since Anthems to The Welkin at Dusk and I never hear anybody dispute it. 9/10

Review by: GhaudePhaede

Great dissapointment. Boring uninspired shit. Great production but its not enough. Sorry guys.

Review by: Mac

This album is what i can call ''Progressive blindness''. To bad for my all-time favorite band EmperoR!! It is still good but it is too noisy and make my ears bleed and it's not as melodic as their previsious one

Review by: kiril

Back to band page