Beherit "The Oath Of Black Blood"

Beherit is a black metal band from Finland. The band was formed in 1989 by Nuclear Holocausto (Marko Laiho), Black Jesus (Arjo Wennström) and Sodomatic Slaughter (Jari Pirinen), with the purpose of performing "the most primitive, savage, hell-obsessed black metal imaginable". "Beherit" is the Syriac word for Satan. Through the uncommercial nature of their music, visuals, and live performances, the band quickly attracted a cult following. Besides the "raw" sound, the band's music is noted for its avant-garde side and emphasis on atmosphere. Beherit are now regarded as a pioneer in their genre.

Beherit's compilation album, The Oath of Black Blood, includes material recorded from June to September 1990. The album was released in 1991. The album is traditional, fast, and brutal old school black metal, heavily influenced by death metal, thrash metal, and grindcore. However, it is not a separately recorded studio album. The band got some funding for recording an album from their record label at the time, Turbo Music, but supposedly spent the money on alcohol. The label then released their demo Demonomancy and 7" EP Dawn of Satan's Millennium as a compilation, without the band's permission, and named it The Oath of Black Blood, which was originally supposed to be the name of the new album. Laiho commented on the album in an early 1992 interview for Metal Hammer magazine:

"I hate the album! It's so bad, we never wanted to release it. The songs are from our 'Demonomancy' demo and our label Turbo Music just used a regular cassette for the album pressing. Honestly, I never sent them the master tape... We're planning to release a proper LP soon, this time on my own label. The result should be much better."

The album is now generally regarded as a full-length release. Spinefarm Records re-issued it in 2005, and Season of Mist in 2006. In 1991, the band members briefly performed under the name, The Lord Diabolus, from which a single demo tape was made and released independently before the band returned to working under the name Beherit. The songs "Intro (Tireheb)" and "Nocturnal Evil" were later rereleased as Beherit songs.

Track listing

1. "Intro" – 0:57
2. "Metal of Death" – 0:54
3. "The Oath of Black Blood" – 2:41
4. "Grave Desecration" – 2:02
5. "Witchcraft" – 3:13
6. "Goat Worship" – 1:55
7. "Demonomancy" – 2:22
8. "Black Mass Prayer" – 1:15
9. "Beast of Damnation" – 4:07
10. "Hail Sathanas" – 1:47
11. "Dawn of Satan's Millennium" – 4:46

Recording information:

Recorded and mixed at Alaky Studio in Finland.

Remixed at Jowa Studio in Germany.