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Black metal will forever be associated with Norway; there is no denying that aspect, given black metal’s origins and lyrical content, especially post Black Circle shenanigans. Because of this, country-specific black metal is usually overlooked and underrated. Nowadays, Polish and Icelandic black metal are becoming part of the forefront, while others are making a comeback. The Greek black metal sound has always been around, but it’s making a comeback, and for a sound that gave us Rotting Christ, we tend to forget the other bands. Call them the true black metal denizens if you will.
Celebrate your crepuscule nature,
Rid of your innocence and grace,
Crush the righteousness of your creation,
Crucify the savior inside.
A quick translation note (anyone can correct me if I am wrong): While the word Πανσέληνος can translate to “full moon” in English, there is something else that is worth mentioning. The word σέληνος can be transliterated to selinos, which gives us the name Selene, the Greek goddess of the moon and the translation to the word “moon”. However, given the prefix Παν-, meaning “all”, “everything”, and, in this context, “involving all members”, can literally translate Πανσέληνος to “involving all members of the moon”. This means that the band didn’t just focus on one primordial goddess lyrically; they focused on a triptych of goddesses and their associated realms: Tiamat, Kali, and the obvious Selene.
From the very beginning, Πανσέληνος has a consistent flow in the music, especially between and within its transitions from song to song. It starts and ends with a classical piece, with heavy piano and backing strings. The first seconds sound like something is ascending towards the heavens, before the piano, strings, and what sounds like a full orchestra come together and create a first movement. After the first track, the album spears forth with sinister synths, heavy distorted guitars, and hellish vocal work. Hearing the clean play of the blast beats and distorted guitars is highly satisfying. It’s fast, filled with moving emotion, and brilliant tonality that remains grandiose, culminating in the fifth track, “The Nine Skulls of Kali.”
Throughout the album you can also hear spoken word mantras, as if the speaker is worshiping the triptych of goddesses that gave birth to this album. What I love most is the lyrical content. Not only is the band worshiping moon goddesses as a whole, but they are worshiping the primordial female nature of life. While these goddesses gave us life and can be seen as generous or even tender in nature, they can also be destructive and cause calamity onto us who don’t understand or insult them in any way. Ah, the essence of woman!
All in all, Πανσέληνος is an album filled with soft yet destructive ferocity, and one that seems content in reveling in its nature. There is a lot of emotion and clean production values that shouldn’t go unnoticed on this album and shouldn’t be forgotten. Given the strong, infernal vibes this album has, their lyrical content is something to look forward to. I expect great things from this band, and I do look forward to their next release!