Bal-Sagoth
One of the more over-the-top bands to emerge in quite some time,
Bal-Sagoth is simply a wonder to behold.
Weaving a black metal base with swirling symphonic keyboard work
(keyboards are the dominant instrument here), influences ranging
from straight classical music to Conan The Barbarian (at least it
sure sounds like an influence), and lead visionary
Byron's distintive vocal style (occasional black metal shrieks,
but more often a subtle narrative style), Bal-Sagoth has forged
a sound unlike anyone else.
It can all be a bit much at times, what with impossible song titles
such as "And Lo, When The Imperium Marches Against Cul-Kothoth,
Then Dark Sorceries Shall Enshroud Te Citadel Of The Obsidian
Crown" and the general larger-than-life feel of
the songs.
But no one fuses symphonic/classical music with the darkness of
black metal better.
This is one of those bands where any description of their sound is
unlikely to be accurate or enough to really know what they sound
like -- Bal-Sagoth has to be heard to be believed.
If there is a criticism of the band, it's that they are beginning
to stagnate musically.
True, they are utterly alone in their field, and each album is
professionally executed and uniformly of high quality.
But since forging their sound on Starfire Burning, and perfecting
it on Battle Magic, the last two albums have done little more
than rehash the same ideas.
They are nonetheless an immensely entertaining band, and well worth
a listen.
Current Members
Byron Roberts
vocals
Chris Maudling
guitars
Mark Greenwell
bass
Jonny Maudling
keyboards
Paul Jackson
drums
|
Former Members/Guests
Jason Porter
bass
Dave Mackintosh
drums
(DragonForce)
Dan Mullins
drums
(The Axis Of Perdition, My Dying Bride)
Leon Forest
keyboards
Alistair MacLatchy
bass
|
Discography
A Black Moon Broods Over Lemuria
1994
Cacophonous
 |
- Hatheg kla
- Dreaming of atlantean spires
- Spellcraft & moonfire (beyond the citadel of frosts)
- A black moon broods over lemuria
- Enthroned in the temple of the serpent kings
- Shadows `neath the black pyramid
- Witch-storm
- The ravening
- Into the silent chambers of the sapphirean throne (sagas from the antediluvian scrolls)
- Valley of silent paths
|
- Byron Roberts
- Chris Maudling
- Jason Porter
- Jonny Maudling
|
Starfire Burning Upon The Ice ...
1996
Cacophonous
 |
- Black dragons soar above the mountain of shadows (Keyboard instrumental)
- To dethrone the witch-queen of mytos K`unn (the legend of the battle of blackhelm vale)
- As the vortex illuminates the cystalline walls of Kor-Avul-Thaa
- Starfire burning upon the ice-veiled throne of ultima thule
- Journey to the isle of mists (over the moonless depths of night-dark seas)
- The splendour of a thousand swords gleaming beneath the blazon of the hyperborean empire
- And lo, when the imperium marches against Cul-Kothoth, then dark sorceries shall enshroud the citadel of the obsidian crown
- Summoning the guardians of the astral gate
- In the raven-haunted forests of darkenhold, where shadows reign and the hues of sunlight never dance
- At the altar of the dreaming gods
|
- Byron Roberts
- Chris Maudling
- Jason Porter
- Jonny Maudling
|
Battle Magic
1998
Cacophonous
 |
- Battle magic
- Naked steel (the warrior`s saga)
- A tale from the deep woods
- Return to the praesidium of Ys
- Crystal shards
- The dark liege of chaos is unleashed at the ensorcelled shrine of A`Zura Kai (the splendour of a thousand swords gleaming beneath the blazon of the hyperborean empire part II)
- When rides the scion of the storms
- Blood slakes the sand at the circus maximus
- Thwarted by the dark (blade of the vampyre hunter)
- And atlantis falls...
|
- Byron Roberts
- Chris Maudling
- Jonny Maudling
|
1998 BNR Top Ten album
The Power Cosmic
1999
Nuclear Blast
 |
- The Awakening Of The Stars
- The Voyagers Beneath The Mare Imbrium
- The Empyreal Lexicon
- Of Carnage And A Gathering Of The Wolves
- Cellisto Rising
- The Scourge Of The Fourth Celestial Host
- Behold. The Armies Of War Descend Screaming From The Heavens!
- The Thirteen Cryptical Prophecies Of Mu
|
- Byron Roberts
- Chris Maudling
- Mark Greenwell
- Jonny Maudling
- Dave Mackintosh
|
Atlantis Ascendant
2001
Nuclear Blast
 |
- The Epsilon Exordium
- Atlantis Ascendant
- Draconis Albionensis
- Star-Maps Of The Ancient Cosmographers
- The Ghosts Of Angkor Wat
- The Splendour Of A Thousand Swords Gleaming Beneath The Blazon Of The Hyperborean Empire (Part: III)
- The Dreamer In The Catacombs Of Ur
- In Search Of The Lost Cities Of Antarctica
- The Chronicle Of Shadows
- Six Keys To The Onyx Pyramid
|
- Byron Roberts
- Chris Maudling
- Mark Greenwell
- Jonny Maudling
- Dave Mackintosh
|
The Chthonic Chronicles
2006
Nuclear Blast
 |
- The Sixth Adulation Of His Chthonic Majesty
- Invocations Beyond The Outer-World Night
- Six Score And Ten Oblations To A Malefic Avatar
- The Obsidian Crown Unbound
- The Fallen Kingdoms Of The Abyssal Plain
- Shackled To The Trilithon Of Kutulu
- The Hammer Of The Emperor
- Unfettering The Hoary Sentinels Of Karnak
- To Storm The Cyclopean Gates Of Byzantium
- Arcana Antediluvia
- Beneath The Crimson Vaults Of Cydonia
- Return To Hatheg-Kla
|
- Byron Roberts
- Chris Maudling
- Mark Greenwell
- Jonny Maudling
- Dan Mullins
|
Reviews: Blabbermouth
Sea Of Tranquility
