Above (Samael album)
Above is the eighth studio album from the Swiss heavy metal band Samael, released on 6 March 2009 by Nuclear Blast.[1]
| Above | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 6 March 2009[1] | |||
| Studio | Little Rock, Switzerland | |||
| Genre | Black metal, industrial metal | |||
| Length | 38:30 | |||
| Label | Nuclear Blast | |||
| Producer | Xy | |||
| Samael chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [2] |
| Blabbermouth.net | 6.5/10[3] |
| Chronicles of Chaos | 5.5/10[4] |
| Exclaim! | Favorable[5] |
| Rock Hard | 9/10[6] |
| Sputnikmusic | [7] |
Background
Earlier in 2009 the band began promoting a virtual death metal band from their Myspace profile. The band was called "Above" and featured computer-designed band members in a virtual world, whose lyrics and songs were written by Samael. Later through Myspace, the band announced that they would be taking their side-project Above and turning it into their newest Samael album.
Commenting on the album, Vorph said:
"After 20 years, we've tried to do an album that would represent what SAMAEL is all about and we did 'Solar Soul'. We feel now it is the right time to [remind] the people where we come from and that's exactly what 'Above' will do. It is like an enhanced version of our three or four first albums, maybe the missing link between 'Ceremony of Opposites' and 'Passage'. With the 'Era One' project we've tried to work on different influences; with 'Above' we stripped everything down."[8]
Track listing
All lyrics are written by Vorph; all music is composed by Xy, except where noted
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Under One Flag" | 3:41 |
| 2. | "Virtual War" | 4:04 |
| 3. | "Polygames" | 3:56 |
| 4. | "Earth Country" | 3:55 |
| 5. | "Illumination" | 3:31 |
| 6. | "Black Hole" | 3:36 |
| 7. | "In There" | 4:01 |
| 8. | "Dark Side" (Music by Vorph) | 2:57 |
| 9. | "God's Snake" | 4:07 |
| 10. | "On the Top of it All" | 4:42 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Black Hole (Verso Mix)" | 3:34 |
| Total length: | 42:04 | |
Notes
The track "Dark Side" is a reworked version of "The Black Face" from the album Worship Him.
Personnel
Samael
- Vorphalack – guitar, vocals
- Makro – guitar
- Masmiseîm – bass
- Xytraguptor – drums, keyboard, programming, production
Technical personnel
- Kris Fredriksson – recording, engineering
- Fredrik Nordström – mixing
- Erik Broheden – mastering
- Patrick Pidoux – artwork, layout, design
Chart positions
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| French Albums (SNEP)[9] | 145 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[10] | 99 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[11] | 37 |
References
- "Samael - Cover artwork and new track revealed". nuclearblast.de. Nuclear Blast. 5 January 2009. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
- Rivadavia, Eduardo. Samael: Above at AllMusic. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
- Bergman, Keith (25 May 2009). "CD Reviews - Above Samael". blabbermouth.net. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
- Smit, Jackie (24 March 2009). "Samael - Above: Review". chroniclesofchaos.com. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
- Taylor, Laura Wiebe (2 April 2009). "Samael: Above". Exclaim!. Toronto, Ontario: 1059434 Ontario. ISSN 1207-6600. OCLC 971916273. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
- Blum, Tobias (2009). "Samael: Above". Rock Hard (in German). Rock Hard Verlags- und Handels- GmbH (262). ISSN 1437-8140. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
- Spencer, Trey (9 March 2009). "Review: Samael - Above". Sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 3 July 2011.
- "Samael: Above Side Project Changes to the New Album". Metal-Temple.com. December 1, 2008. Archived from the original on March 2, 2009. Retrieved August 16, 2012.
- "Lescharts.com – Samael – Above". Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- "Offiziellecharts.de – Samael – Above" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
- "Swisscharts.com – Samael – Above". Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 December 2021.