The Ancient Egyptians have certainly left a mark on human civilization, and their deep connections to the metaphysical and mysteries have led members from various notable acts including SETH, ORANSSI PAZUZU, and others whose identities remain intentionally hidden, to forge a new international collective aimed at exploring those nether regions. Its name relates originally to Isis, the goddess who became an archetypal mother and protector, but it’s her magic abilities and ties to both the living and dead realms that are of prime interest as ASET channels their essence into a full initiatory venture titled Astral Rape. A malign spectral possession is central to this offering, with the participants orchestrating its trauma through adept blackened songcraft, and an Egyptian perspective is joined with the potency of these rites to leave listeners equally enlightened and ravaged.
Black forces emanate from an inner temple chamber at the onset of “A Light in Disguise,” and the full intensity takes hold when crossing a threshold into blast beats and malevolent arpeggiated forms, with some of those notes extending mesmerically around structural shifts with frenzied drum maneuvers. The wrath subsides momentarily to reveal subtler shades of dismality, and turmoil ultimately persists between crushing riff elements and interwoven tremolo currents. The production effectively pushes tremolo rawness toward the incorporeal on “Abusive Metempsychosis,” reflecting another aspect of the haunted allure possessed by these arrangements, and that spirit materializes further when a noted descent strikes to the slowed beat of one particular section. Anomalies in the atmosphere are also encountered here, along with sounds of ancient ritualistic practices emerging periodically, and they imbue the compositions with a different mystique that continues among the deathly conjuring of “A New Man for a New Age.” Its eerie resonations drift entrancingly through multiple developments, which include speed riffs following the dread into lower planes, and heavy rhythms become prominent while these energies culminate after a spectral ambience arises.
The darkness reveals deeper forms on “Lord of Illusions,” and a thrashy attack is marked among its heavier dominance, along with other cold-fretted and chord designs striking with a distinct rhythmic quality. Distant tremolo dimensions are directed over this trance at proper intervals for a potent elemental gathering, and its substance is capitalized by viscerally spewed vocal atrocities. Clean notes imbue the chugged intro of “Astral Dominancy” with a nonphysical presence, and it proliferates in otherworldly tremolos that spellbind around dissonant riff tones, which assert their impact at a point converging with vocally commanded forces. Evocative fret layers effectively punctuate these formulas before “Force Majeure” unveils dim ceremonial depths, where the vocals fully employ wretchedness amid cryptic backing chants, and ancient spirits here are also reflected in the drumming until its primeval beat is exchanged for more elaborate forms of ritualism. The arrangements gradually escalate to convey a successful summoning that concludes with “Serpent Concordat,” and a fierce collective is woven through its regions of death and madness, with the erraticism and detail from dagger-edged riffs proving sufficient to tear past the fabric of our material realm. Malice flows beyond in various disharmonic auras, leading to strings of melodic ruin as this rite seals an assimilation with demonic supremacy.
A hostile pantheon is further called through the lyrical medium, and it begins appropriately on “A Light in Disguise” by introducing “The oldest deity,” whose mysterious identity remains “Faceless” while exerting its influence over someone. It “Whispers lies” to achieve a state where “Your emotions are its own,” and this progresses when an otherworldly door is opened and “You drift into its spiral.” It’s peculiar to see Christ credited with figuring out “The enigma” of this entity, and I’m unsure about the underlying significance, but he is referenced again later, after “Abusive Metempsychosis” further explores the traumas of possession. That violating act is detailed in multiple forms, with “Delusive forced entries” being one reflection of the inner havoc wreaked as “To your flesh, you no longer belong,” and an Egyptian presence invoked through “The magic of Osiris” continues during the course of “A New Man for a New Age.” Ceremonial death and rebirth are conveyed from this incarnate deity’s perspective, with calls to the chaos god Seth observed during a descent “Into the inferno,” and the complete dismantling of identity is exercised in “Denying all what I was before.” Returning “Back from the beyond” follows, and Isis is praised for the role of her love, “Love under will,” which possibly nods to one of Crowley’s famous verses, in making this resurrection possible. That other connection to Christ is drawn here, since he was fabled to have risen after death, and its combination with surrounding allusions to the story between Isis, Seth, and Osiris elevates the intrigue.
Another Christ-like apparition may underlie the “Hermit in filthy shades” on “Lord of Illusions,” and the “Marvelous tricks” behind his “Attracting insects and mesmerizing lost souls” are also consistent, along with other biblical suggestions bearing some level of scorn. It seems there is a lure toward sacrifice from these deceits before an inversion reveals “Truth is a lie” on “Astral Dominancy,” and that altered perception coincides with ritualistic acts designed to unseal a “World below where hatred is the law,” with the importance of inner purity while its demons are harnessed becomes expressed in how “They’ll make your Will a weapon…so behave!” The invocation is complete for a union “Defying God’s Law” that leads into “Force Majeure,” where “Through pain and sufferings, it brings the truth through darkness” reflects the ordeals endured to gain by these means, and this attainment is what transpires during the definitive conjuring on “Serpent Concordat.” Pantheons shift when calling “Disciples of Pan,” who appear within the surrounding void and assist in aims “To defy the cosmic law” and “Backstab providence,” and despite the hostility accompanying this “Covenant with beasts,” they ultimately give “The secrets” after being effectively bound in a “Lustful web.” The detailed contents of these texts caused some difficulty in narrowing down their most notable passages, and many mysteries are left to be uncovered within, making them a rich source for contemplation alongside the music.
This release had my attention from the moment I saw its cover art and heard the first catacombic notes, as if it communicated a mighty symbolic force directly at subconscious levels, and the effect holds up with a darkened fury offered throughout Astral Rape. That energy permeates all aspects of the work, with fervent vocal dynamics and drumwork of frenzied precision driving the chaos around shadowy riff manifestations, and the cold malevolent distortions of these forms capitalizes on the allure of their substance. Having a compositional focus on metal while minimal chants and drums are utilized to evoke an Ancient Egyptian presence during certain passages, instead of relying heavily on that era’s traditional instruments to create atmosphere, is undoubtedly favorable, but it also might be interesting to explore what some of those elements could contribute to future efforts. Anticipation will be high for whatever may arise on the next becoming grimoire, and until it reaches our plane of existence, ASET have delivered a soul-ripping exemplar of modern black art that will transfix through ages ahead.
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