To understand what the album "Under Satanae" is, we need to look at the history of MOONSPELL and their early discography. On April 1, 1995, their debut disc "Wolfheart" was released; what interests us is everything that preceded that event. In 1989, in a tiny Lisbon suburb called Brandoa, with an area of two and a half square kilometers and a population of about 15,000, a band called MORBID GOD emerged. The band was founded by a teenager named Fernando Ribeiro. The group recorded only one demo called "Serpent Angel," which happened in 1992. Shortly afterward, Fernando changed the band's name to MOONSPELL. MOONSPELL's first demo came out in 1993; aside from instrumental introduction and conclusion, we hear three compositions on "Anno Satanae": "Goat On Fire," "Ancient Winter Goddess," and "Wolves From The Fog." The following year saw two EPs, one of which was a trimmed version of this demo with somewhat altered songs and improved recording quality — though let us be honest, it was still terrible. The fledgling band simply had no means to record properly. The breakthrough came with the next EP, "Under the Moonspell." We hear a kind of oratorio consisting of instrumental pieces at the beginning and end, the two-part "Tenebrarum Oratorium," and a track called "Opus Diabolicum." So then, what is the album "Under Satanae"? Now we can easily answer this rhetorical question. This album is everything listed above, re-recorded by MOONSPELL in May–July 2007. Today MOONSPELL is the number one band in Portugal; they have the ability to record in the best European studios, and the musicians' professional level has grown significantly over these 13 years. The musical material of virtually all compositions has also undergone some changes. However, before turning to the music itself, the booklet deserves special mention: this is not a standard mini-album but an A3-sized poster featuring the image of a necromancer. What you see on the actual cover is merely one-twelfth of the full illustration!
The album is logically divided into three parts. The first is the re-recorded 1994 mini-disc "Under the Moonspell." An imitation of a Muslim prayer gives way to the magnificent "Tenebrarum Oratorium." And here we can already hear that inimitable MOONSPELL style — the combination of growling vocals with brief passages delivered in Fernando's clean baritone, which is hard to confuse with anyone else's voice. It is precisely this variant of their sound that the band partially returned to in 2003 with the album "Antidote." Pseudo-Eastern melodies, female vocals, and Fernando's ominous declamations give way to a short instrumental; in the original version these two tracks were a single piece. The Tenebrarum Oratorium continues — this part is performed almost entirely in clean vocals, unusually high-pitched and with the effect of a distant cry, achieving a stunning, very beautiful yet eerie sound that transitions into the pompous and triumphant "Opus Diabolicum." The sounds of an orchestra tuning up yield to this brilliant number. Compared with the original version, as with all the other compositions, keyboards are given far greater prominence. "Chorai Lusitania!" is the only track not re-recorded, though it is simply an acoustic guitar over the sound of ocean waves. Some may argue the originals are more valuable, but let us be objective: these songs are now recorded as they can sound with modern technology and the musicians' current skill level — the result is superb! A curious detail: the first track of the 1994 EP was titled "Allah Akbar! La Allah Ella Allah." Fernando created an anagram, reversing the phrase, and on this disc the track appears as "Halla Alle Halla Al Rabka Halla."
Omitting the introduction and conclusion from the 1993 demo, Fernando substantially expanded the compositions "Goat On Fire," "Ancient Winter Goddess," and "Wolves From The Fog," primarily with keyboards, resulting in a much more atmospheric sound. This recording gives the opportunity to evaluate these songs in an entirely new way. In the demo version, even the vocals were barely audible, the guitars sounded atrocious, and therefore the songs themselves were perceived rather superficially.
The "Serpent Angel" demo by MORBID GOD consisted of just one song with the same title, running six minutes long. Finding the cassette was virtually impossible — even online the file surfaced extremely rarely, and hearing anything on it clearly would have been quite difficult. Yet this is Fernando's firstborn, his very first recorded composition. In essence, this is the main gift of this release: now fans of the band can hear Fernando Ribeiro's earliest attempt. The track has, of course, been completely re-recorded and now runs over seven minutes. So what do we hear? We hear two fast-paced episodes redolent of symphonic black metal, between which sits an unhurried and very precise passage. What was in the original I cannot judge — the current version partially recalls early EMPEROR as well as ROTTING CHRIST on one hand and DIMMU BORGIR on the other, in their late-'90s sound. A fascinating, very beautiful, and memorable composition.
"Under Satanae" is the eighth studio disc from the Portuguese group, and at the same time it is a best-of that serves as an enormous surprise for all fans of the band. The recording quality is top-notch — even the most demanding critic could find no fault with the mixing and mastering. Every member of MOONSPELL did exceptional work. Albums without flaws do not exist, but there are those that approach the summit... "Under Satanae" is one such album.