Vera: Most of the time an album has to be reviewed around the very moment it hits the shops and we, at Lords of Metal, do the utmost to get our plain opinions on line as soon as possible. It can never be too early, so it seems. And then suddenly… you find out that you just received an album to review, released in 2007. Strange things, but anyway, it is never too late either. And no, this is not a re-release, this is just the second album of the Swedish band Pantokrator, called ‘Aurum’. They started in 1996. Second album… well, these guys are not in a hurry, that’s for sure. But I have to admit that they made a number of demos, EPs and even two compilation albums and last but not least a real debut album ‘Blod’ in 2003.
Pantokrator is a Christian band; the name means “Lord Almighty” in ancient Greek language. Consequently all lyrics deal with biblical themes and there is a kind of concept. Fortunately this is not a cheesy, mellifluent record. No, Pantokrator is powerful and aggressive and joins the ranks of technical death metal bands with these ten songs. The music is featured by heavy, crushing riffs and the low-pitched growl of vocalist Karl Walfridsson, though this front man also uses a scream-like voice from time to time. Guitar solos add a melodious tinge and these are best in the lingering mid-paced ‘Where Lilith Found Her Peace’ and ‘The Order Of Melchisedec’. The pace is rather slow in most of the songs and it rarely gets speedier than moderate mid-pace. They create aggression with propelling riffs and vocals. In addition they inserted (hazy) spoken fragments and samplers in several songs. In two songs - the above mentioned ‘Where Lilith Found Her Peace’ and the final ‘The Hidden Treasure’ - they made an appeal to atmospheric female vocals of Lina Holmström.
The production of Rickard Bengtsson (Arch Enemy, Spiritual Beggars) is full-blooded and chunky, though the ticking drum style is sometimes annoying. In the end the songs in the latter part of ‘Aurum’ all sound similar. The general sound of Pantokrator is recognizable, the musicians are skilled, but writing fetching songs is a discipline they do not master (yet) very well. That’s why ‘Aurum’ leaves me with mixed feelings.
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