Nile - Those Whom the Gods Detest Review

Posted by Daniel Wilcox on 11.05.2009

Nile's sixth studio release sees them looking to regain their spot atop the death metal mountain, but can they pull it off?



Nile - Those Whom the Gods Detest
Review by Daniel Wilcox

Karl Sanders – vocals, guitar
Dallas Toler-Wade – vocals, guitar, bass
George Kollias – drums

Track listing:
1. Kafir!
2. Hittite Dung Incantation
3. Utterances of the Crawling Dead
4. Those Whom the Gods Detest
5. 4th Arra of Dagon
6. Permitting the Noble Dead to Descend to the Underworld
7. Yezd Deser Ghul Ritual in the Abandoned Towers of Silence
8. Kem Khefa Kheshef
9. The Eye of Ra
10. Iskaner D’hul Karnon

Nile rose to prominence within the death metal scene and a pace that was previously unseen, their first two records, [1998’s] Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-Ka and [2000’s] Black Seeds of Vengeance, both being seen as classics within the genre and to varying extent, all of their records are seen as being accomplished pieces of works. However, it would seem as though the band has fallen from grace almost as quickly as it as they rose, previous album Ithyphallic [2007] being released to much hype, but its critical acclaim not matching that hype. Those Whom the Gods Detest then, is the band’s sixth studio album and, the band hopes, a return to form. It’s a record that is being met, as all Nile records seem to be, with much hype, and one that sees the band try out some new things but also revert back to some old tactics, and not just in terms of the music. Up until the aforementioned Ithyphallic, all of the band’s albums had contained liner notes explaining the lyrics, the themes behind the music and so on and so forth. Well those notes return with the new record, a nice little touch that fans appreciate.

To a certain extent though, those notes aren’t really needed, as many of the vocals, sung in a more normal octave then fans would be used to, are entirely legible in particular moments on the record, predominantly some rare slower moments, and even some acoustic ones. This new element gives the music a completely fresh dynamic rarely seen in this kind of music and while I think it’ll polarize a lot of fans, I very much appreciate the effort here. The production work is here is simply phenomenal and does wonders for the vocals, and the song writing prowess is equally colossal, and overall you get the feeling that the band has really raised the bar for themselves once again.

Lyrically, there’s a lot of typical death metal stuff denouncing religion, as you’d expect, but Nile does this in a way that is blunt but clever and that makes for one of the best albums, lyrically, in this genre that I have heard. Right from the opening track “Kafir!,” the band takes aim at religion and doesn’t let up, vocalist Sanders screaming, “There is no God but God / There is no God but the One True God / There is no God but the hidden God / There is no God!” The band’s fascination with all thinks Egyptian also continues, and this is reflecting in not just the lyrics but the music as well, the obligatory instrumental track “…Towers of Silence” being driven forward by all kinds of Egyptian music elements as well as Sanders’ acoustic prowess, the track making for a soothing break in contrast to the brutality that proceeds and follows it.

Make no mistakes though, this is terrifically heavy, face-melting album that does not let up. Toler-Wade and Sanders make for a formidable team, as is evident in just about every track but more notably the likes of “Permitting the Noble Dead…” and the razor-sharp bludgeoning of “Hittie Dung Incantation.” Just about every riff on this record packs a major punch, and then songs like album-closer “Iskaner D’hul Karnon” show that the band also has an ability to write pretty ferocious melody that shows there are still plenty of ideas left in this band’s locker that they can spring on its listeners at any given time. There are, of course, weak points however, such as the repetitive nature of a few songs, not so much musically but lyrically. All too often they favor repeating the same line over and over again rather than actually coming up with something different. All in all though, this is probably one of the stronger albums I have heard from this genre this year, and suggests to me that Nile are more than willing and able to fight for their place atop the death metal mountain.

Essential downloads: “Kafir!,” “Hittie Dung Incantation,” “Permitting the Noble Dead…,” “…Towers of Silence,” “The Eye of Ra” and “Iskaner D’hul Karnon.”

The 411: Slight tweaks and changes have made for a significant improvement on Nile's previous two records. More toned-down, acoustic arrangements and the more frequent use of clean vocals make for a much more enjoyable listen all round, and the vintage-Nile use of middle eastern influences combined with mesmerizing, roaring guitars are again the driving force the record as is par for the course when it come to Nile records. While not on the level of the band's first couple of albums, this is certainly a step back in the right direction, or more of a giant leap, and an essential pick-up for fans of the genre.

Final Score:  8.0   [ Very Good ]