BEHEMOTH – Opvs Contra Cvltvram (live atop the Palace of Culture)

Behemoth is a Polish extreme metal band from Gdańsk, formed in 1991. They are considered to have played an important role in establishing the Polish extreme metal underground. They gathered atop Poland’s infamous Palace of Culture to perform four brand new tracks from their upcoming album Opvs Contra Natvram.

THE DEATHLESS SUN

I am nothing, without him, nothing is I am no one, it is he Sol Invictvs, the deathless sun

I am nothing, without him, nothing is I am no one, it is he Sol Invictvs, the deathless sun

My god is the all-devouring pyre My goddess dwells in Hadean somber tides Burst forth from the crushing depths as Leviathan (Leviathan, Leviathan) And then descend into the bowels of the Earth The imperial throne is set to dominate The powers of ruthless Zephyr forever shall reign

I am nothing, without him, nothing is I am no one, it is he Sol Invictvs, the deathless sun

I am nothing, without him, nothing is I am no one, it is he Sol Invictvs, the deathless sun

My god is the all-consuming fire Fated center of the bottomless pit He is the void beyond any cipher Starless night, immortal lit When the throne of the carnal world’s restrained The powers of ruthless Zephyr forever shall reign

I am nothing, without him, nothing is I am no one, it is he Sol Invictvs, the undying sun

I am nothing, without him, nothing is I am no one, it is he Sol Invictvs, the undying sun

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh

Let’s drink to he of the shining morn To the lacerated, yet so divine To the sun that evermore shall rise To my ascent, to thy demise

I am nothing (nothing), without him, nothing is I am no one, it is he Sol Invictvs, the undying sun

I am nothing (nothing), without him, nothing is I am no one, it is he Sol Invictvs, the undying sun

OFF TO WAR!

Am I ov god, Satan or an obsidian hemisphere Am I the fated sovereign or sanctitude inverse? Consider the great solitude ov the truly liberated man Set forth to raze frail humanity once again

Am I to act alone? If so I’ll draw blood from stone Am I to act alone? If so I’ll be the thundering tremor to whip the storm

Why are we such tender flesh under blackening skies? Are we defenceless prey in a predator’s eye? Can we stay stalwart in the face ov fated tragedy? Are we to remain subjugated by fictitious morality?

Am I to act alone? If so I’ll separate the meat from bone Am I to act alone? If so I shall be the herald ov reckoning’s swarm

Host ov the ones condemned Dethrone god malevolent Hear the cannons roar We are off to war

Uncrown he with reins adorned Blacken the icon We for whom no god shall mourn Off to war

Am I ov god, Satan or an obsidian hemisphere Am I the fated sovereign or sanctitude inverse? Consider the great solitude ov the truly liberated man Set forth to raze frail humanity once again

OV MY HERCULEAN EXILE

A blinded hermit in oblivion, disgraced Like Odysseus lost in Poseidon’s endless domain In a realm devoid of solace, I roam But these sorrows are mine and mine alone Wayward like a forlorn mutt, astray Stertorous, I heave Atlas’ torturous weight I am lost in a moment and the moment is lost in me But I shall endure new life in my agony

With anima sprawled open With corpus violently split I bled for you Now you bleed for me

I do not possess the prowess of mighty bards and poets Void of ambition to evangelise Yet there’s poetry in my blasfemia to be freed So chant on ye filthy whores, profane and so malign

With anima sprawled open Corpus of boundless rifts I wept for you Now you weep for me

With hearts profoundly scorched Wounds weeping sanguine I burnt for you Now burn without and within

Lend thy ear onto me And heed my prayer Incline thy all-seeing eye And heed my call This war cry could never be silenced But weep no more my brethren Thy herculean labor shall endure forevermore (Forevermore)

Shall endure forevermore (Forevermore)

THY BECOMING ETERNAL

O blest be thou, as vast as the night (In nomine igni) Thou who dost spawn the infernal and divine (In odivm fidei) O blest be thou, as bright as light (In absentia christi) Armadas of rebellion align

I shall bathe myself in wine and gold I will tear the arteries of cosmos so it may bleed Behold the malignant salvo of my crimes Abysmal eons that have wandered by Where would I seek the truth but here Where mutiny and chaos bloom?

I satiate the ferocious hunger of the beast (In nomine igni) Cast the flock in great fury upon the Earth (In odivm fidei) From South to North, from West to East (In absentia christi) In unity my fleets traverse

I shall cause thine oferwhelming hatred to consume Among the sainted legions where black hearts ignite Forsooth, the branches of this wretched tree I’ll wound And rob its pestilential scions of their lives Where should I seek the truth but here Where mutiny and chaos bloom?

Be praised, O be glorified Exalted, honoured and lionised Breathe in and breathe out Cleansing fire from within and from abofe Thy becoming is eternal The thrusting spear disinheriting the meek By the name of the borneless one We hail Satan We hail thee