The crawling chaos. A strange and divisive trip, Saturnalia Temple made their imprint with the reverb-heavy and trancelike Aion Of Drakon.
When their drummer left in 2013, the Swedish black magicians became a duo, headed by the occult-minded frontman Tommie Eriksson and supported by longtime bassist Peter. They are joined by session drummer Tim Call. With To The Other they tone down the abrasive weirdness a few notches, but retain the hypnotic darkness which they have made their own. Eriksson’s effect-heavy vocals immediately stood out on Aion Of Drakon, and seems to have been a dealbreaker for many listeners. On their sophomore effort the demented wails have been dropped completely, replaced by a more conventional croaking that is still shrouded in echo.
The extreme dissonance has also been reduced significantly, with the band putting more weight on a more straightforwardly heavy approach. Still murky doom metal at its heart, To The Other relies on raw production values and monotonous gnarly riffs that sound like they could make mountains crumble. This being a Saturnalia Temple-album, there are still more than a few touches of the unexpected. The title track sees the band wander down a boggy southern path, paved with a remarkably bluesy southern twang. The atmosphere of forbidden backwoods worship lays thick under the blanket of fuzz, as the band crawls along like a malevolent serpent.
Eriksson seems to thrive on the mixture of ritualistic darkness and spaced out effects, dishing out both in substantial amounts. Not without aspirations of grandeur, the band also prove themselves at penning crushing riffs, such as the hulking “March Of Gha’agsheblah”. An unstoppable force moving along at snail’s pace, Saturnalia Temple have refined their occult black acid trip with thundering consequences. On the psychedelic doom metal spectrum, Saturnalia Temple are about as depraved-sounding as they come. To The Other walks a fine line between oppressively grim and mind-bendingly entrancing, retaining just enough of their psychedelic edge to keep the repetitive melodies interesting. Those who were turned off by the overwrought weirdness of Aion Of Drakon may want to give this a spin; it feels like the band has found and improved their sound.
Swedish gurglechurn purveyors of cultish psychedelic drear Saturnalia Temple late last year announced the permanent acquisition of Kennet Granholm for the drummer role. They had Tim Call ( Aldebaran) sit in for 2015’s third album, To the Other, which was released through The Ajna Offensive and Listenable Records, alongside bassist Peter Karlsson and founding guitarist/vocalist Tommie Eriksson, and they’ll head out on tour starting next weekend in Europe and the UK to continue to herald their particular brand of the peculiar, a darkened swirling cauldron that continues to boil as though by forces unnatural. To further the blend of weirdo doom and guttural oozing, the trio have a new video now for “Black Sea of Power” from To the Other. Also the name they’ve given the run of shows, it’s a fitting enough example of their methods, and of course the clip itself is rife with obscure death imagery, woodsy ambience, stop-motion and a camera that continues to stare long after it’s become uncomfortable. Just because Saturnalia Temple don’t scream and blastbeat doesn’t mean the music isn’t extreme, and if you haven’t yet gotten hold of To the Other, the hypnotic march of “Black Sea of Power” might just offer sway.
Saturnalia Temple - 2009 EP, released through Nuclear Winter Records. On the Powers of the Sphinx - 2010 split with bands Nihil Nocturne, Nightbringer and Aluk Todolo, released through The Ajna Offensive; Aion of Drakon - 2011 full-length album, released through The Ajna Offensive; Impossibilium - 2013 EP, released through The Ajna Offensive. Saturnalia Temple - To Know (2015-10-07) by End All Parties published on 2016-10-07T13:54:31Z Saturnalia Temple - Aion Of Drakon (2015-10-07) by End All Parties.
Enjoy: Saturnalia Temple, “Black Sea of Power” official video Official video of Black Sea of Power by Saturnalia Temple from the album To The Other, 2015 (Listenable Records / The Ajna Offensive). All rights reserved by Saturnalia Temple. Since its release, Saturnalia Temple’s critically acclaimed Aion of Drakon debut took the band to numerous major festivals throughout Europe, including Roadburn, Hell’s Pleasure, and Heavy Days in Doomtown, as well as on tours in both the U.S. The strong occult and dark magical backbone is more prevalent than ever on To the Other, and as a band that actually started before the current “occult rock” trend, there are no fetishistic hoods, blood, or pentagrams.
To The Other is instead a relentless journey through the downfall of the world and the rise of the individual striving against the grain. As a title, To The Other signifies that it is a gift from the band to both the Other Side and to all that is in the shadows, the other side of existence, that which has been neglected by the everyday world of light. American drummer Tim Call (Alderbaran, Howling Wind, Nightfell) brings his experience and power to Saturnalia Temple on this recording. The cover art was created by Manuel Tinnemans (The Devil’s Blood, Deathspell Omega, Necros Christos). Saturnalia Temple on tour: 26.02 Groningen (NL) // Vera 27.02 Nijmegen (NL) // Merleyn 28.02 Paris (FRA) // Glazart 29.02 London (UK) //The Black Heart 01.03 Antwerp (BEL) // Trix 02.03 Berlin (DE) // Urban Spree 03.03 Kassel (DE) // Goldegrube 04.03 Hamburg (DE) //Bambi Galore 05.03 Oberhausen (DE) // Resonanzwerk Tags:,.
Rife with obscure, self-shot looking imagery that just finally holds still on a shot of someone walking off into a nameless forest void, yeah, you could say that the new video for the title-track of Saturnalia Temple‘s forthcoming To the Other LP fits the atmosphere the song creates. The track itself is a nine-minute march of bizarre and ritualized doom, not beat-you-over-the-head-with-riffs heavy, but with a grueling purpose to its echoing incantations all the same. To the Other is out Feb. 23 on Listenable in Europe and The Ajna Offensive in the US. I haven’t heard the record yet, but it seems safe to presume this is a significant slice of it, Aldebaran drummer Tim Call stepping in to punctuate the morose proceedings in all their resonant, hypnotic, darkened vibing. Worth noting that the fire pit above — an accent worthy of adding to any outdoor experience — makes an appearance in full nighttime glory in the video’s midsection, but that it’s just part of the whole rite being portrayed on “To the Other,” the guttural call of its title line echoing even after the song’s finish. Whatever else you might listen to today, chances are nothing else will sound quite like it.
Video and PR wire info follow, for the curious: Saturnalia Temple, “To the Other” official video Official video of title track from Saturnalia Temple’s new album To The Other. Released in Europe by Listenable Records on February 23 and in USA by The Ajna Offensive. Today, the enigmatic Saturnalia Temple premieres a new video for “To the Other.” The song is the title track for the band’s highly anticipated second album, To the Other, set for North American release on April 7th via The Ajna Offensive. Saturnalia Temple is black magic metal, a dark spiritual vortex rooted in heavy and hypnotic sounds, a pure voice of the Draconian magical tradition now further harnessed with To the Other. As a band that moves intently and without compromise, this recording and production was done in their own studio, Sitra Ahra, located in the forests outside Uppsala, Sweden. Witness their mesmerizing majesty in visual form exclusively HERE.
Since its release, Saturnalia Temple’s critically acclaimed Aion of Drakon debut took the band to numerous major festivals throughout Europe, including Roadburn, Hell’s Pleasure, and Heavy Days in Doomtown, as well as on tours in both the U.S. The strong occult and dark magical backbone is more prevalent than ever on To the Other, and as a band that actually started before the current “occult rock” trend, there are no fetishistic hoods, blood, or pentagrams. To The Other is instead a relentless journey through the downfall of the world and the rise of the individual striving against the grain. Swedish obscurist three-piece Saturnalia Temple have announced an April 7 North American release for their sophomore outing, To the Other. For those who heard their 2011 debut LP, Aion of Drakon, it’s likely a date worth marking on the calendar, the trio’s consuming aural darkness and wash of echoing tone set an atmosphere that went beyond cult rock and into a drearier facet of doom. I was fortunate enough to see them, and they conjured an immersive swirl even on stage, where one might expect a rawer presentation.
Very cool band. They’ve toured in the US since then, and one imagines they’ll be back sooner or later in support of To the Other.
For now, the album release date, tracklisting, cover and detailed whatnots follow here, fresh off the PR wire: SATURNALIA TEMPLE set release date for new AJNA OFFENSIVE album Today, The Ajna Offensive sets April 7th as the North American release date for Saturnalia Temple’s highly anticipated second album, To the Other. Saturnalia Temple is black magic metal, a dark spiritual vortex rooted in heavy and hypnotic sounds, a pure voice of the Draconian magical tradition now further harnessed with To the Other. As a band that moves intently and without compromise, this recording and production was done in their own studio, Sitra Ahra, located in the forests outside Uppsala, Sweden.
Since its release, Saturnalia Temple’s critically acclaimed Aion of Drakon debut took the band to numerous major festivals throughout Europe, including Roadburn, Hell’s Pleasure, and Heavy Days in Doomtown, as well as on tours in both the U.S. The strong occult and dark magical backbone is more prevalent than ever on To the Other, and as a band that actually started before the current “occult rock” trend, there are no fetishistic hoods, blood, or pentagrams. To The Other is instead a relentless journey through the downfall of the world and the rise of the individual striving against the grain. As a title, To The Other signifies that it is a gift from the band to both the Other Side and to all that is in the shadows, the other side of existence, that which has been neglected by the everyday world of light. American drummer Tim Call (Alderbaran, Howling Wind, Nightfell) brings his experience and power to Saturnalia Temple on this recording. The cover art was created by Manuel Tinnemans (The Devil’s Blood, Deathspell Omega, Necros Christos).
That cover, as well as tracklisting, are as follows: Tracklisting for Saturnalia Temple’s To the Other 1. ZazelSorath 3. To The Other 4. Snow Of Reason 5.
March Of Gha’agsheblah 6. Black Sea Of Power 7. CrownedWithSeven 8.
Void MORE INFO: Saturnalia Temple, “Aion of Drakon” Tags:,. Roadburn audio stream season continues today with the next batch of sets recorded at this year’s fest at the 013 popcentrum and Het Patronaat in gorgeous Tilburg, the Netherlands. Any excuse to relive those four days back in April and I’ll take it. Thanks as always to Walter and the Roadburn crew and to Marcel van de Vondervoort for overseeing the recording process. Please enjoy: AUN – Roadburn 2012 Dark Buddha Rising – Roadburn 2012 Dopethrone – Roadburn 2012 End of Level Boss – Roadburn 2012 Necros Christos – Roadburn 2012 Saturnalia Temple – Roadburn 2012 Spiders – Roadburn 2012 The Wounded Kings – Roadburn 2012 Read The Obelisk’s.