Brutally insane death metal cooked up with Egyptian spices is what Nile is all about. This is not a band from Egypt, but a band from South Carolina with a keen interest in ancient Egyptian culture, and metal, and an ability to blend the two cohesively, without it sounding like a cheesy gimmick.
Nile's intense variety of death metal is very well done, with cool guitar solos throughout, and remains very heavy despite the slower parts and ethnic chanting which show up here and there. The musicianship is skilled and precise. The impressive drummer, Pete Hammoura, resembles a human drum machine in his speed and precision. He incorporates blast beats in his delivery, but not overly so, and his snare is tuned in such a way as to blend them into the music. Though vocals vary somewhat, most are delivered as a low death rumble, which are not annoyingly subsonic like those by Crimson Thorn.
Nile's music benefits highly from the ethnic influences and some of the album's best moments are when the Egyptian flavored music or chanting transitions into brutal death metal. The results are sometimes bone chilling. Pete Hammoura's family supplied the band with many of the authentic Egyptian instruments used on the album, and Tibetan Buddhist monks allowed themselves to be recorded (but not seen) playing human skull drums and thigh bone flutes which the band managed to manipulate and fit into the music. Besides using these instruments to create authentic sounds, Nile further reinforces the ethnicity by incorporating song structures and guitar techniques that also sound Egyptian.
When compared to their first release, Festivals of Atonement, this album is even faster with more Egyptian influences. Nile also has a limited EP release called Ramses Bringer of War, which contains earlier versions of three songs which appear on Catacombs: "The Howling of the Jinn," "Ramses Bringer of War," and "Die Rache Krieg Lied der Assyriche." The Catacomb's versions are more developed and better overall.
The lyrics exclusively deal with ancient Egyptian themes, and primarily with violent and occult subject matter based on ancient Egyptian religions and brutal wartime practices. The lyrics to two songs are completely in Egyptian:
Although they do not specifically attack the God of the Hebrews, as do bands like Morbid Angel and Deicide, the lyrics which deal with occult themes promoted by ancient Egyptian religions are generally violent and downright vulgar at times.
Nile has created excellent and innovative death metal worth checking out, but be forewarned: the lyrics do not deal with the subject matter from a biblical perspective, and this should be taken into consideration if you are thinking about getting this album.
Chris King (5/28/99)
*Quotes taken directly from The Crass Menagerie #67 (©The Crass
Menagerie/Jeb Branin) . Some other information is also based on the same
interview. Email Jeb Branin at toocrass@hotmail.com
. Distribution of the Crass Menagerie handled by Onelist http://www.ONElist.com.