Review of Melechesh - "Enki"

MID-MAJOR MAYHEM

By: Geoff Teach

Formed over twenty years ago in Israel, the blackened thrash band Melechesh have had to overcome more obstacles than most metal acts. For example, being a Sumerian/Mesopotamian blackened metal act based in Jerusalem and entitling their first EP “As Jerusalem Burns” caused them to endure a years-long legal battle with Israeli authorities who truly (although mistakenly) thought the band were promoting terrorism, and even wrongly placed some of the original members on wanted lists. After much strife and struggle, though, Melechesh not only proved their innocence to the proper authorities, they also proved to be a force to be reckoned with among today’s metal acts with their uniquely heavy, Mediterranean-infused music.

Now based in Germany – and signed to the highly respected Nuclear Blast Europe – Melechesh have released their sixth studio album, Enki. Awash in Middle-Eastern imagery and influence, Enki is nine epic and intricate songs that are sonically captivating and barbarically battering. Sounding something like an oddly perfect blend of Carcass and Dead Can Dance, Melechesh’s Enki is ambitious, dark, and phantasmagoric...and is firmly one of 2015’s finest albums to date.

Starting off with a bang, Enki begins with the ass-kicking “Tempest Temper Enlil Enraged”. Rife with blast beats and effective peaks and valleys, “Tempest Temper” immediately introduces you to Melechesh’s exclusive amalgam of “Egypt-meets-extreme-metal” sound. Moving along in the release, other gems include the crushing “Lost Tribes” (which includes a guest vocal appearance by the ever-present Max Cavalera), “Multiple Truths”, “Palm The Eye and Lapis Lazuli” (featuring Volbeat’s Rob Caggiano on lead guitar), and the closing opus, “The Outsiders”, a twelve-plus minute descent into a sandblasted nightmare that brilliantly finishes this killer effort.

Summarily, Melechesh’s Enki is a masterpiece. I fully endorse this album and I extremely recommend that you head to pick up a copy as fast as your local speed limits (or internet connection speed) will allow.

KEEP IT METAL! \m/

To listen to “Multiple Truths” off of Enki, just press play below!