With almost two decades of blackened existence, this Japanese band is surely deserving of a tribute of sort. But tributes are usually made for a dead band or a dying one (one which leaves a trail of shitty albums to follow), so I thought that this is one of the reason why there's no tribute album made for Sabbat. This phenomenal black metal outfit thrashed out since the early part of the 1980s and while they stayed true to their ideology, they progressively become more innovative and prolific. "Karisma" is still as BLACK and EVIL as their '85 debut 7" EP or the ultimate black metal masterpiece "Envenom". The only difference is that they've finally attained their finest brand of originality. Yes, those Venom-like structures are still rocking my asses but Sabbat now took the genre by their own manipulation; by perverting the concrete metal tradition with a Japanese sound! Check out tracks like "Bowray Zamurai/Samurai Zombies" or "Harmageddon" to witness the making of a new CULT!!! That probably explains why my CD has a "Japanese Version" tagged on the sleeves. Hahaha, hints of nationalism!!! Uhh... I'd rather not talk about it... Anyway, this is a great CD that can be enjoyed by all metal fans, be it NWOBHM,thrash, black,etc and do trust my words, this is the one of the few TRUE METAL CDs you should get in a shitty year like '99! HAIL THE SATANIC SAMURAI CULT!!!

© 2000 vasp necrogoat