Dimmu Borgir – Inspiratio Profanus
Release Date: 8th December 2023
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
Order
Genre: Covers, Black Metal.
FFO: Emperor, Gorgoroth, Belphegor.
Review By: Jeff Finch
Cover albums are hard to gauge: do you judge the album based on how the covers sound as compared to the original, do you judge based on the quality of the songs as if they were originals of the band performing, a combination of both? That was the predicament faced with this ‘new album’ from black metal legends Dimmu Borgir, Inspiratio Profanus. On the one hand, they decided to tackle a bevy of different sound types here, on the other hand, listeners know Dimmu Borgir and what they sound like, so what are the expectation? For this listener, a big fan of the band and a fan of a handful of these songs, I decided to let the album just run its course and see how it sounded as a whole. And how did it sound? Pretty damn solid.
As mentioned prior, there is an assemblage of different sound types covered on this record: OG black metal, hair metal, progressive rock, and even some industrial. As should be expected, when tackling the very genre they exist within, the results are more than satisfying. The blistering tempos of Black Metal, Satan My Master, and, later on, Nocturnal Fear could have been pulled directly from a Dimmu album, they’re just ferocious on all fronts, the type of covers the average listener might expect from these legends. Blast beats, tremolo riffs, and that black metal shriek, all of these things sound perfectly at home to start off the album on a truly strong note.
Third cut, Dead Men Don’t Rape, is the first notice that these gents didn’t just decide to stay in their wheelhouse for this album, deciding to cover some Industrial from GGFH. An overtly mechanical sounding opening, complete with layered vocals that sound like they were mixed with AI to create a haunting mishmash of sounds, yields to blast beats, riffs tuned low, distorted clean vocals, a sound unfamiliar to Dimmu Borgir but one they manage to pull off with relative ease, as it really just sounds like a slower song of theirs blended with the industrial distortion.
The uptempo nature of Burn in Hell allows the band to shine, as the riffs are chunky, damn near buzzsaw guitars, the harsh vocals work in tandem with the music, a perfect contrast to the chorus which, believe it or not, is exceptionally catchy, the clean vocals done quite well, which should make any open-minded fan of Twisted Sister really proud. As the song nears its end, the clean vocals and harsh vocals share space, a perfectly evened layer, no voice overtaking the other, a really fun romp that prepares us for the best cover on the album, their cover of the metal masterpiece Perfect Strangers.
As a big fan of this track, it was the first one I jumped to, and I’m glad I did. Sure, the clean vocals here are nowhere near as flawless as Ian Gillian, and the harsh vocals do take some getting used to in this capacity, but musically, they hit on every piece. The beauty of the atmosphere is kept in place, courtesy of the synthesizers and the beefy riffs, the double bass a nice addition to the transition out of the chorus, as, overall, the band decides to stay primarily with the sound made famous by Deep Purple. This was likely the best move they could make, in keeping the music relatively unchanged, as the song is already heavy and instantly recognizable. The few changes they do make (i.e., the double bass and harsh vocals) are enough to give it that Dimmu Borgir stamp of approval. They nailed it with this cover.
Honestly, the only song(s) that really don’t stick out are Metal Heart and the other version of Noctural Fear. The heavy metal of Metal Heart sounds uninspired, though not bad in any capacity. After 6 excellent cover songs, this one just seemed to fall flat for some reason, which really is a shame, as the band was close to nailing every single cover they did. And the final track Nocturnal Fear (Celtically Processed) doesn’t really sound too different from the previous cover, ultimately making it a fairly useless track where a separate cover could have done so much more to close the album out.
I know cover albums aren’t always well received, and Dimmu Borgir has their fair share of haters as well, so this album had the possibility of being really polarizing. But to this listener, it’s another notch in the belt for these black metal titans, tackling some songs that required a bit of ingenuity to provide the respect they’re due. Outside of one mediocre cover and one almost duplicate track, the album just plain rocks. If you’ve heard the original songs before, you should be able to appreciate what Dimmu Borgir has done here in covering them. If you haven’t heard the originals, take this for what it is, then: a unique addition to the exceptional discography of these Norwegian legends.
(4 / 5)
