Impaled Nazarene formed in 1992 in Finland. I don't quite know which town it was in, but i have heard that it may have been Suomi. The mission was to make the most extreme black metal ever. However, the band were not Norweigen, and so they were not bound by the " Rules " of black metal at the time. Impaled Nazarene classed themselves " Nuclear metal ", thus doing away with the constraints of grace put forward by black metal.

And so " Ugra Karma " was released in 1992, a brutal record on all accounts.

However wind forward 10 years and we find ourselves here. " Absence of war does not mean peace " is a reminder of Ugra karma, and yet it is so much more.


It is full of riffs that are melodic, yet never indulgent. It is packed with rapid drumming that never threatens to dominate the mix. It is crammed with catchy bass lines that swim into your mind.

The band have come a long way in 10 years, and have left behind the slightly crude sound of early works. This fact is proved by the opening track " Stratagem ". Perhaps the only indulgent moment on the record, its odd half Egyptian sound is made yet more enticing by a trailing snare roll, as track two [ and the guitars ] burst into life.

The title track has an extremely catchy riff bolstered by Mikaakim's opening screen and the flood of sound created by the drummer, Repe Misanthrope. The lyrics depict a force about to storm a town, having built a plan around reconaissance. It features the kind of lyrics Impaled Nazarene are famed for, and some may find them offensive.

" The lost art of goat sacrificing " is a standout track, with its brilliant solo backed up by layered drum and bass work. It is tracks like this that make us realise what a loss we suffered when Somnium died. Still, tracks like this give him a modus operandi to be proud of.

The album is full of these tracks, which is what amazed me. It felt like the record never hit a peak. In my book, that makes a good record.

And so the album rumbles like an unstoppable behemoth towards its target, while never boring the listener with its rage.


However, the album has great melodic diversity. Its not Metallica style melody, but if I had to draw comparison to another record it would be " Heartwork " by the seminal British death heads Carcass. However, the melody never detracts from the speed and fury of a song, it just becomes a layer of flavor.

The Rhythm guitarist Onraj 9mm and the bassist Arc V 666 work well together here, which is rare for guitarists today. The drumming often sounds lofty and on a tangent of its own while the bass and guitars race along together. Again, this serves only to make the record sound even fresher.

Overall this record is a breath of fresh air that will keep you coming back for more. It has no poor tracks and no filler. Every track shines with a blinding riff, and that is worth the asking price alone.

If you like this then try these:

Impaled Nazarene- Ugra karma[ Osmose 1992 ]
Carcass- Heartwork [ Earache 1993 ]

And one more thing. The name " Impaled nazarene " comes from a story in which Jesus was believed to be a vampire, and so he was impaled for his crime. Interesting!










Recommended: Yes