Anubi comes from Lithuania, a small country in the Baltics. Though this black metal band is well-known amongst Lithuanian metalheads very few people know about them outside the country. This article will shed some light on band, album and the music as well.
Anubi is an Egyptian god of death who weighed the hearts of nobles. Such name was chosen because the band members were interested that mythology and founded it very mystical. The band was founded in 1992 by Skro (guitars) and Renofer (drums). At first they’ve experimented with psychedelic music until in 1993 Lord Omnious (vocals) joined the band. During the full moon they’ve recorded their first demo “God’s Pantheon”. After that the rest was history and band continued to produce prolific works until the death of Lord Omnious in 2002 which led to disbandment of the band.
Since the reader is introduced to the basic history of the band the album which is the object of this article will be discussed next. The name of the album translated from Lithuanian means “When Death Closes the Eyes of Full moon”. The title alone hints about the themes explored: death, darkness, and mysticism. This directly reflects the ideas of the band as they “try to affect the psyche of listener and create a world which is even darker than it is now”. Lyrics are full of such concepts and expressions regarding that and keeps listener guessing. Also, all the lyrics are written in Lithuanian so to non-native listener it adds an additional effect.
The best way to describe the music is… bizarre. Comparing it to the other Black Metal albums both in Lithuania and the rest of Europe this one manages to stand out. The mixture of clean (they sound sinister and mysterious) and tortured shrieks creates a constant unease. The usage of keyboards is jarring and unexpected. Drums, guitars and bass create a tense atmosphere.
All in all, this album stands out as a really unusual piece of Black metal in both its ideas and execution of music. Anyone who looking for a new listening experience should give this album a try.
