review by: Jez Andrews

When standing beside mainland Europe and the USA, we in Britain don't exactly enjoy the richest of extreme metal traditions. Metal may have been born here, but few are the British acts that have really burned their mark into the modern day scene of brutality. Needless to say, therefore, such bands are treasured when they do emerge. Such bands were Venom, Napalm Death, Carcass, Bal-Sagoth, and more recently, Akercocke. Such a band, also, are the merciless, blasphemous purveyors of "necro" sound, Anaal Nathrakh.

Nothing could prepare me for The Codex Necro. After the initial blasting impact of "The Supreme Necrotic Audnance," it's noticeable that vocalist V.I.T.R.I.O.L is really out for blood, as his chilling screams tear through the barrage of black metal inferno. Make no mistake about it, these guys mean business. A storm of razor sharp riffing, superb drum tracks, and something in the sound that is just plain vicious. "Submission Is for The Weak" begins in a deceptively calm manner. Calm, that is, until the instruments cut out, a voice filled with pure anguish orders 'DIE ON YOUR KNEES!,' and it's into full throttle once again.

There is a certain Gehenna flavour to the violence of this album, except Anaal Nathrakh project a cold hatred of such magnitude as I have rarely seen anywhere in metal. And it's exhilarating, to say the least. Music with guts. Music with feeling. Music with...sections of techno style drum samples? Well, yes, there were parts of "Paradigm Shift - Annihilation" that concerned me a little. Nothing to get bent out of shape about, but elements like that can ruin an otherwise perfect metal album.

It occurred to me what chaos will ensue when Anaal Nathrakh recruit the necessary band members for live shows. It's hard to imagine such awe-inspiring brutality in the flesh. One thing is for sure, in The Codex Necro, the band have created a beast that will not be tamed. 'Thanks List- Absolutely fucking no-one. Do not ask for lyrics, as Anaal Nathrakh's will never be published.' There's a lot of anger there, and I will speak for many when I say that these evil-doers won't be forgotten in a hurry. Nice work.

review by: ~Eternus~

Hmm... The anticipation for this CD was incredibly high for me; the release date kept on being changed and after calling up many a mail order CD place I gave up, only to find it in a second hand store. So I traded the bespectacled man behind the counter two CDs for it. I got home and put the CD in straight away.

Initially I was very impressed with the speed and the metalness oozing out of my speakers. I think the main thing that appealed to me about Anaal Nathrakh (after I found an mp3 many moons ago) was the production, which the band calls "necro," which I guess is quite fitting. A pretty harsh, extreme sound that makes the listening a very claustrophobic and intense experience.

However, once the sound is out the way I just keep finding faults and things that don't appeal to me. Firstly, the fact that Anaal Nathrakh seem to be infinitely less black metal than I thought they'd be, with their use of industrial, grindcore and samples, which I wasn't expecting. Occasionally these influences work well, and I can't deny Anaal Nathrakh's originality, but I mainly find that they annoy me.

Mainman Irrumator (also in Frost) is certainly a talented guitarist, which is seen in the first track and the fourth track particularly - which I still really like. V.I.T.R.I.O.L (the vocalist) has some quite good screams that suit the extremity of both the sound and the music itself.

As I with Frost (reviewed later in this issue) , I am sure you will enjoy this album more than I do as (together with frost) Anaal Nathrakh have been receiving great reviews in many a magazine and fanzine, so give it a chance!

If you're looking for some extreme metal music with originality, give Anaal Nathrakh a chance. However, if you're looking for more black metal with that old feeling, I'd like to point you in the direction of Nargaroth or Tsjuder.