### Tiamat: Amanethes

#### 14/04/08 || Euthanatos

Do you know which Tiamat album was the last one I gave two shits about? “Wildhoney”. That album was released in 1994. More than a decade later, Tiamat release “Amanethes”, something that actually pleases me. Took ‘em long enough. Tiamat was one of those bands that started out death/doom and really got the whole doom vibe hyped up in the early nineties, then became gay as shit gothic, gained a bunch of fans and lost a whole lot more (or less, who knows).

So what’s so special about “Amanethes”? Is it death/doom again? No, it’s not, it’s still gay, it’s still gothic, but it’s actually good. And no, I have no idea what “Amanethes” means. Look it up yourself. Maybe it’s being more metal and having less electronics (or nearly none at all), maybe it’s the vocals from Edlund sounding a bit more rasp and epic, or maybe it’s just the fact that this is a solid collection of songs that make my cock go hard. Whatever it is, I like it.

Still, this isn’t grade A shit yet. I mean, the more I listen to “Clouds” and “Wildhoney”, the more I miss that sound, so it’s pretty obvious that I’m not going to cream over this release. But, when I listen to a song like “Until the Hellhounds Sleep Again” or “Lucienne”, eerily similar to stuff like Sisters of Mercy, Bauhaus and more old school goth like that, it pleases me to know that a band can change (or evolve) gracefully, as long as they put out quality material. Those are two of my favorite tracks from “Amanethes” and they are the farthest from their earlier material, so go figure. I really thing Tiamat should use more female vocals as well. Edlund’s vocals are marvelously complemented by a female counterpart, so they should explore that some more.

There are also, naturally, some “Skeleton Skeletron”, “Judas Christ” moments, full of melody and gayness. “Will They Come” is such a moment. As you may have guessed, I’m not particularly fond of those, but they are well-developed and performed.

Not exactly a sound revolution, but finally something worth my time from and old favorite. There is hope yet for all those awesome bands that suddenly turned to shit for the next ten years of their careers. Like Tiamat, they might suddenly surprise you with something decent.

The cover: It’s a chick with black lipstick and a cross in her mouth. Sexy.

7 headed dragons out of 10.

- Information
- Released: 2008
- Label: Nuclear Blast
- Website: www.churchoftiamat.com
- Band
- Johan Edlund: vocals, guitar, keyboards, theremin
- Thomas Wyreson: guitar
- Anders Iwers: bass
- Lars Sköld: drums

- Tracklist
- 01. The Temple Of The Crescent Moon
- 02. Equinox Of The Gods
- 03. Until The Hellhounds Sleep Again
- 04. Will They Come?
- 05. Lucienne
- 06. Summertime Is Gone
- 07. Katarraktis Apo Aima
- 08. Raining Dead Angels
- 09. Misantropolis
- 10. Amanitis
- 11. Meliae
- 12. Via Dolorosa
- 13. Circles
- 14. Amanes