black/death: Negator: "Gates to the Pantheon"

Negator (Germany): “Gates to the Pantheon”

Negator plays a well-balanced style that is part black metal, part death metal, and executed tightly, efficiently, and in a compact format, with up-to-date studio techniques, as found on current death metal (non-old school death metal). Speaking of style, Negator uses at least four recurring guitar fundamentals: tremolo/black metal riffing; thick death metal riffs; dissonant notes; and chunky thrashing hooks. Vocally, the vocals are both black and death, although the black metal style is more prevalent.

Overall, Negator’s music goes to toe to toe with the most popular bands playing blasting/brutal death metal. Negator may not be the most famous of names, but I recommend this to fans of Belphegor and Behemoth, as well as Hate Eternal, and modern blasting metal in general. The difference is that Negator sounds newer to the game, so to the listener they will sound fresh, since this band comes from a black metal approach.

Warning: knowledgeable listeners will know that Negator used to be a lot more of traditional black metal, with their 2004 debut “Old Black.” You should know that they have changed a lot, and their push from that style towards Behemoth-style intensity, while done very well, might not be liked by some, who will see the band as abandoning black metal for greener pastures.

Leaving aside that touchy issue of style change, if you just listen to this for what it is now, you see that Negator has taken a jump to running with the big dogs, and it’s the type of energy goes over well with fans of “extreme metal” in the U.S.

Well done. www.negator666.de