In 1994 Skeleton Of God were just beginning to garner international attention. Death metal circles were abuzz with praise for their debut EP Urine Garden. Then, without warning, the band disintegrated. Fourteen years later, the mending of relations between Jeff Kahn (gtr, vox, art), Erik Stenflo (drums), and bassist Joel DiPietro, has yeilded the eleven tracks on Primordial Dominion, a unique conceptual masterpiece.
Decidedly psychedelic, this work (purportedly inspired by a trip on the still-legal psychotrope Salvia Divinorum) scopes out a heretofore unheard parallel musical realm -- a death metal odyssey on a par with the best of the genre but without the blood and guts.
Visionary, inspired and perfectly executed, Primordial Dominion carves its own niche in the wake of many a lesser band. Its intriguing concept holds sway from Jeff Kahn’s extraordinary cover art, to the killer song titles, right down to the catalog number (LSD-0025). I might add that the poster included is worthy of a review all its own.
Layers of sound unfold like levels of the Inferno. There is the schizophrenic conundrum of “Tentacle Gears” which is a melange of bubbling guitar melodies, insane speed-metal drumming and grinding slow drones. The underworld soundscape of “Sheperdess” and the psychotic assault of “Eyeland” invoke Celtic Frost and Voi Vod. One could be forgiven for mistaking the instrumental “Divinorum” for a Melvins track.
“Dark Energy” starts with a throbbing sawtoothed sonic drone. Is this the devil’s bansaw or Jim Jones’ car alarm? Soon layers of feedback issue forth followed by machine gun drumming. It’s the sound of a decent into a black hole accompanied by demonic gutteral vocalizations. The album reaches a brutal pinnacle on “Tribunal”, while “Journey’s Twilight” is 21st century druid music replete with what sounds like an electronic conche shell. This one will imprint crop circles in your brain.
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