Satanic Planet

Satanic Planet

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ft. Travis Ryan, Eric Livingston, Carrie Feller, Nomi Abadi, Shiva Honey, Jung Sing.
Genre: Doom Metal, Atmospheric Metal.
Released: 28/05/2021
Via Three One G

Album Review: Satanic Planet – Satanic Planet

It’s not every day that an album is created by the co-founder of The Satanic Temple but alas, ‘Satanic Planet’ is here. Created by Lucien Greaves (The Satanic Temple co-founder), Luke Henshaw (Planet B & Sonido de la Frontera), Dave Lombardo (Slayer, Misfits, Mr Bungle, Suicidal Tendencies & Dead Cross) and Justin Pearson (Thelocust, Dead Cross, Swing Kids & Deaf Club), Satanic Planet is a musical rendition of what The Satanic Temple stands for. This is an album I’ve been waiting forever since it was announced so let’s just jump straight into it. 

For those unfamiliar with The Satanic Temple let me fill you in real quick. Based out of the United States, The Satanic Temple is a nontheistic religion that promotes egalitarianism (Social Equality), Social justice and the separation of Church and State. Members of the religion follow the seven tenets which are:

1. One should strive to act with compassion and empathy toward all creatures in accordance with reason.
2. The struggle for justice is an ongoing and necessary pursuit that should prevail over laws and institutions.
3. One’s body is inviolable, subject to one’s own will alone.
4. The freedoms of others should be respected, including the freedom to offend. To willfully and unjustly encroach upon the freedoms of another is to forgo one’s own.
5. Beliefs should conform to one’s best scientific understanding of the world. One should take care never to distort scientific facts to fit one’s beliefs.
6. People are fallible. If one makes a mistake, one should do one’s best to rectify it and resolve any harm that might have been caused.
7. Every tenet is a guiding principle designed to inspire nobility in action and thought. The spirit of compassion, wisdom, and justice should always prevail over the written or spoken word.

That should be all you need to know going into this unique release! 

The album is a very atmospheric and doom-like venture with the emphasis being firmly on the satanic ideologies and characteristics. Songs like ‘Unbaptism’ and ‘Invocation’ are prime examples of what you’d expect from a satanic release. The entire album has an overwhelming feeling of dread and an almost evil sounding instrumental that sets the tone of the record perfectly. 

I have to admit, Satanic Planet is certainly an acquired taste as it doesn’t follow many musical conventions at all. For members of The Satanic Temple, this is a great look into some of Lucien’s views as he gifts distorted vocals that speak his truth. Musically, the album is very disjointed and feels like something you’d hear echoing in the background of a horror film. 

With the star-studded lineup on the album, you’d probably be surprised at just what the band have managed to create. Unlike anything, any of the members are known for. I can safely say that this album stands out from the pact of new alternative music being released today.

Satanic imagery is littered throughout the album. Songs such as ‘Baphomet’, ‘Devil In Me’ and ‘Liturgy’ all express ceremonial aspects of The Satanic Temple while songs like ‘999’ take a more sinister approach with sung omens and an unprecedented amount of darkness looming over the song.

Truthfully, I know this album won’t be for everyone. The whole Satanic nature of the album is bound to cause controversy which will inevitably work in the band’s favour. I’m a huge fan of the style of music produced in this album and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes atmospheric and methodical genres of metal. I dont think we will have another album like this for a while!