Saligia – Sic Transit Gloria Mundi (2011)

Hailing from Norway, the cradle of Black Metal, today we have Saligia and their old-school nihilistic release “Sic Transit Gloria Mundi”. Featuring 40 minutes of pure and unadulterated Black Metal, the band relies on slick riffing and drumming to capture an occult feeling behind this release. There are no over-the-top shrieks of over-extended use of tremolo-picking section, just plain and simple devastating Black Metal like in the old days.

The opening blow titled “Casus Gloria” nicely builds up into a very retro Black Metal sound that prevails through this very well crafted release. The band delivers just the right amount of ‘devilish’ riffs to create a very effective atmosphere and does not overdo things too early. The vocals and rhythm sections of “Sar Ha-Olam” keep up with the same tempo than the first track and we think it is just great. The speed of this album is not super chaotic, allowing the music to flow nicely and deliver its occult message without getting on your nerves.

The first problem of this release immediately become evident when you listen to tracks like “Womb Cavers”, “Orb of Flesh” and “Shed Old Skin”, the band is very repetitive in nature and all these songs will give you the Déjà vu feeling that many Black Metal bands induce on people. While this is not a bad thing if you like to listen to the same (or very similar) song over and over, but for us it kind of killed the flow of this release.

Our favorite track of this release is the crushing “Blood Staineth” song. In this song the band delivers decadent riffs and a very interesting interlude in the middle, just before returning to the devastating aural BM assaults. “Upon the Altar” closes this release in a very triumphal way, since it features a very nice rhythmical closing section paired with hellish vocals.

Overall, we have to say that “Sic Transit Gloria Mundi” is a very effective release in terms of capturing a retro sound and delivering seven tracks of solid Black Metal. For pickier fans like us, the repetitiveness of this release might become a bit annoying, but it is not a make it or break it factor like on many other release. If you are looking for a tight BM release that has elements of older bands of the genre, don’t waste your time and just go and get this album.

Release: September 21st, 2011

Country: Norway