FUNERAL MIST „Maranatha”

Music: black metal
Country: Sweden
Cool Songs: Anti-Flesh Nimbus, Jesus Saves!, Living Temples
Web site: http://www.funeralmist.se/
http://www.myspace.com/thefuneralmist

When it rains it pours. After few years of silence we were starting to worry that Arioch from now on will 'entertain' us only as Mortuus in Marduk, but then suddenlly Salvation's successor appeared – a devilry called Maranatha. (Un)luckilly Arioch created a record which will let you down if you seek Salvation in it.
Maranatha is sovereign work of Arioch and unknown session drummer. This release varies from the previous ones mostly in production, which is more artificial. That causes sporadic loss of power and efficiency. But despite that, there is still recognizable Funeral Mist sound.
Riffs are a little bit paced down, very surprising are the untipical black metal structural elements, especially in the song White Stone, which is not weaker in the message, but in the sound, allthough i doubt this was made unintentionally. Convenient song for small hours tripping. Some songs sound similar to Salvation, but less raw, more plastic.
The record does not let us rest on such weak elements as this one, if we concentrate on them carefully enough and we are able to find external elements even where are not to be found at the first sight. A lot of movie soundtracks (tipical for Funeral Mist) can be found and they represent a great amount of atmosphere, sometimes even a part of the message itself. Soundtracks for example were taken from films such as Nosferatu, Time Of The Gypsies, Ghost In The Shell and so on. I am very curious why Arioch used some soundtracks, especially Ederlezi in the last song Anti-Flesh Nimbus, which is actually a gypsy song. I asume he used it because it is used in Time Of The Gypsies, at least it is the only logical explanation i managed to find. Another odd thing is that he used a sountrack from japaneze animated movie and reversed it. The whole album is very unlimited and it shows Arioch's wide perspective.
Lirically this is one of the most perfected works in black metal, based mostly on free rearangements of biblical themes. Message of the texts is powerful and essential for understanding and experiencing. I dare to say that the point of this album was the message lying in the lyrics, booklet and that music is just creating an apropriate enviorment to express this message. Going this far into details, let me mention the booklet – in my opinion very important part of Maranatha as a whole. There we can find some final keys for understanding the lyrics. Booklet images offer us the last hidden hints, which are not revealed through lyrics.

Some will say that all the misteries in the world cannot make this album as good as Salvaton, because it simply doesn't strike the same way. Maranatha was never an intention to repeat Salvation. It is a monument standing alone and it stands strong. If you see any weakness in this album then you have never really listened to it as it offers itself.

For those who seek inovations, for those who are willing to seek at all and for those who are aware that progress is not something negative (not even in black metal).
ťAnd the eyes of them that see shall not be dim, and the ears of them that hear shall hearken.Ť
(Isaiah 32:3)

note: 9/10

Tracklist

1. Sword of Faith
2. White Stone
3. Jesus Saves!
4. A New Light
5. Blessed Curse
6. Living Temples
7. Anathema Maranatha
8. Anti-Flesh Nimbus

Line-up

Arioch – all instruments except for the drums which are done by an unknown session drummer