THOU SHALT SUFFER · Into The Woods Of Belial | SILVER 2MC TAPE

Silver double music cassette in double shell, 3-panel j-card, limited to 300 copies.

Background information about 'Into The Woods Of Belial'

Before Emperor became the undisputed kings of symphonic black metal, Samoth and Ihsahn were busy crafting something equally sinister yet completely different under the moniker Thou Shalt Suffer. This collection represents the complete death metal chapter of these Norwegian legends – a fascinating glimpse into the primordial darkness that would eventually birth one of metal's most revered acts. The material here spans their entire 1991 output: the raw five-track rehearsal, the "Open The Mysteries Of Your Creation" EP, and the haunting "Into The Woods Of Belial" demo that gives this compilation its name.

What strikes you immediately is how different this sounds from Emperor's later grandeur. This is death metal in its most tenebrous form – think early Darkthrone meets Paradise Lost with hints of Carcass brutality thrown into the mix. Ihsahn's vocals are unrecognizable here, delivering morbid growls instead of his trademark shrieks, while the compositions shift masterfully between doomy crawls and blistering fast sections. The obscure keyboard layers add an ominous atmosphere that hints at the symphonic mastery to come. Darkness Shall Rise has gone above and beyond with this remaster by Patrick W. Engel, including rare Xerasia and Embryonic material that's never been released before. This is essential listening for anyone wanting to understand the complete evolution of Norwegian extreme metal.

For fans of:
Early Darkthrone, Paradise Lost, Sentenced, Carcass, Autopsy

Track listing

MC 1:
A1. Into The Woods Of Belial (Demo 1991)
A2. I Seek The Path Of Obscurity (Demo 1991)
A3. Chimera Dimension (Demo 1991)
A4. The Goat Of A Thousand Young (Demo 1991)
A5. Succumb To Vestigia Terrent (Demo 1991)
A6. Painful Void Of Time (7″ 1991)
B7. Spectral Prophecy (7″ 1991)
B8. Into The Woods Of Belial (Rehearsal 1991)
B9. The Goat Of A Thousand Young (Rehearsal 1991)
B10. Chimera Dimension (Rehearsal 1991)
B11. I Seek The Path Of Obscurity (Rehearsal 1991)
B12. Obscurity Supreme (Rehearsal 1991)

MC 2:
C13. Succumb To Vestigia Terrent (Embryonic Rehearsal 1991)
C14. Painful Void Of Time (Embryonic Rehearsal 1991)
C15. Spectral Prophecy (Embryonic Rehearsal 1991)
C16. Intro (Embryonic Demo 1990)
C17. The Land Of The Lost Souls (Embryonic Demo 1990)
C18. Throne Of Blood (Embyronic Demo 1990)
D19. Morbid Silence (Embryonic Demo 1990)
D20. Meet Your Fate (Xerasia Rehearsal 1990)
D21. Morbid Silence (Xerasia Rehearsal 1990)
D22. Throne Of Blood (Xerasia Rehearsal 1990)

Manufacturer: Darkness Shall Rise Productions, Lengenfelder Straße 58, 08107 Kirchberg, Germany, Contact: darknessshallrise.de