Enter Moonlight Gate

Artist: Lord Belial
Label: Metal Blade
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1

UPC: 039841416022
EAN: 0039841416022
ASIN: B0000060ZN

Release Date: 1998-03-24

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Tracks:

Enter The Moonlight Gate
Unholy Spell Of Lilith
Path With Endless Horizons
Lamia
Black Winter Blood-Bath
Forlorn In Silence
Belial-Northern Prince Of Evil
Realm Of A thousand Burning Souls (Part 1)

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Customer Reviews:

unreal.......2006-01-08

the journey you're taken on as you listen to this album is unreal. if you enjoy any kind of black metal or epic metal, you can't go on having not engrossed yourself in this beautiful work of art.

there's 2 songs that are different from the rest: Lamia and Forlorn in Silence. Lamia is a sort of dark romance that even if you don't like black metal that much, you should find a way to hear this song; this song is original compared to any song I've heard in my entire life. Forlorn in Silence is 4 minutes of stringed instruments and occasional whispers of lyrics that'll blow you away as well. The closing track is a 12-minute mini-story of being the son of satan - ANOTHER great reason to purchase the album.

something that separates this album from others is the occasional twist thrown in the middle of blastbeasts. I don't really know how to explain it. All I can say is that if you can't stand the monotonous blastbeating for 45 minutes, don't fear purchasing this album - yes, it is about 30 minutes of solid blastbeats, but the same guittaring is never heard twice and 1 or 2 second long breaks using the bass or alternating super-fast from blastbeats to non-blastbeats gives a lot of life to the songs you find those in.

All epic black metal albums tend to start the same way: the main character is summoned by evil in some way, shape, or form. This album's opener (also happens to be the title track) is among the best of them, up there with Graveland and Sacramentum (who I listened to both of yesterday). As with Sacramentum, keyboards aren't necessary - the main instruments do the job on their own. (maybe the newer bands should take lessons from these guys) Keyboards are used in only spots where they can be used to enhance the sound and add an eerie effect, a lot like a "finishing touch" to the more powerful areas of the album.

I can't recommend this album enough. These older black metal bands have written some of the most well-thought out music in the history of music, I think. Lord Belial is in this group. get this album now - you won't be disappointed.

Flawless Tortured Album.......2005-01-17

When I first picked this CD up in 99 I didn't know what to expect but 6 years later I am still damn glad that I did. "Enter the Moonlight Gate" is definitly one of the most underated black metal albums of all time. From start to finish this album tears its way through each song. The guitars aren't nearly as complicated as its melodic death counterparts, but the band just uses them to build upon with their use of the flute and chello. Now I know what newcomers are thinking. . . flute and chello don't sound too black metal. But Lord Belial uses them in a way that makes them absolutely hauntinginly atmospheric like in "Lamia". For fans of more blistering black metal, Belial switches gears for songs like "Black Winter Bloodbath" with pulse pounding double bass rhythms that tear your ears apart with every beat. But the real crowning achievement here is the last track, the 13 minute long "Realm of a Thousand Burning Souls Pt 1". This is an epic black metal triumph. Definitly the closing of the album is the most tortured part where a female vox over a deepening riff let you know what Dark wanted to convey. . . the fact that someone wakes up and realizes that for eternity they will be burning. . . and you hear that so clearly when Dark shrieks over the end "Oh my God!!! Noooo!!!" It still gives me chills six years later. From start to finish this is one classic album for metal, not just black metal, but due to whatever reason it never made its mark. Buy it, you will not be dissapointed!

Atmosphere and Devastation all in one.......2004-08-14

Lord Belial create a sound all too many have tried for and failed. Combining pure black metal with just a touch of melody and ambiance. Rarely do they put any keyboards or female vox or any other gothic influences in the songs and when they do it's in the interest of the song and not just copying Cradle of Filth like so many of their peers these days. In fact there are so little gothic influences black metal purists may even love this album. I appreciate all sides of the genre, pure, atmospheric, symphonic,etc. but the way Cradle of Filth and Dimmu Borgir like to hire symphonies to do the work for them is getting tired very quickly. Enter Moonlight Gate is one of the best black metal releases of all time. Dark's shrieks sound f*cking possessed throughout the album. The guitars sound a bit like a more evil sounding In Flames. The rhythem section holds up well and the little bit of keyboards, acoustics and female vox sound nice too. The production initially sounds horrible. After listening to the album a while it actually becomes more enjoyable though, because having no clear distinction between instruments makes Enter Moonlight Gate sound like an entity. Recieves a very high recommendation. Also check out Agathodaimon, Borknager, Ram-Zat, Ragnorok, Khold, Blut Aus Nord and Darzamat if you have some time.

quite unknown yet quite impressive.......2003-03-27

this swedish band uses traditional melodic black metal elements (acoustic passages, female vox, -sparse-keyboards) to produce an unbelieavably powerful and aggressive music that is unmistakably theirs alone.
Dark screeches his way (especially on black winter bloodbath) through the album like a demon and behind him, an immense tide of sonic barbarism rushing to annihilate anything on its way. No prelude for the album, it just begins with a growled sentence (enter the moonlight gate) while the atmosphere builds up in a second into an infernal storm of guitars and drums and in the midst of it all, might come a totally unexpected acoustic break (still with the drums thundering behind) and just as you start taking a breath, the album resumes with its destructive rythms. similar in structure to its successor "unholy crusade". brilliant.

One of my favorite black metal albums.......2003-02-23

This is a great black metal cd. It's kind of hard to describe their sound, but I would say that they play raw, fast, and brutal black metal but also throw in plenty of melody which really gives them a unique sound. Most current black metal bands think that being "melodic" means that you have to have slow to mid tempo songs and rely heavily on keyboards to give the music its melodic touches. This is not the case with Lord Belial. There are no keyboards, but to give the music atmosphere in some songs they use acoustic guitars, flutes, and even some female vocals. There is even an all acoustic instrumental (forlorn in silence). While they don't use those things very often, it is pretty cool to listen to when they do pop up. But what I like most is that even when the songs are fast and brutal, they still at the same time manage to have a twist of melody thrown in, so the songs are more memorable. Not all the songs are lightning fast though. They are not afraid to slow things down, such as on the song Lamia, which has some nice acoustic passages and some flutes in the background (there is also a cool guitar solo in this song). What I also like is that in addition to their creative songwriting, these guys are also exceptional musicians. Listen to Forlorn in Silence if you want to see how good the guitar work can get, and pick out any of the faster songs if you want to see what the drummer is capable of. The vocalist delivers some typical black metal shrieks and screams, but it fits the music very well. The female vocals in the first song are also a nice touch. What's also surprising is that the production is not that bad. It could be better, but it is no where near as horrible as some black metal albums. Overall, if you like your black metal raw and heavy, but also enjoy some melody, then this is the album for you. This is the only Lord Belial cd I own, but I would really like to hear more of them in the future. A very impressive release.

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