Photo by Greg Cristman
Gregory R. Cristman

Behemoth debut new song & NSFW video, playing 2014 Hellfest (line-up)

By Doug Moore

Behemoth at Irving Plaza, 2012 (more by Greg Cristman)

Behemoth frontman Nergal is kind of a badass — he’s an extremely gifted musician and a live-performance powerhouse who’s played an important role in putting the potent Polish metal scene on the international map over the past 20 years. He’s also a cancer survivor; after his 2010 leukemia diagnosis, he underwent chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. Two years later, Behemoth were back on the road and plowing through high-energy live sets like nothing had happened. Again, badass.

Behemoth announced a 2014 release for The Satanist — their tenth album, and their first in half a decade — a few months ago. I admittedly haven’t been too excited by their last few efforts, but after watching the NSFW video for leadoff single “Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel” (streaming below), my enthusiasm for the band has been rekindled. It’s far moodier and more patient composition than the cluttered, robotic death/black metal that they’ve produced recently. They can still put the hammer down when they need to, though; the song’s final minute is both the catchiest and most intense moment I’ve heard them produce since the mid-aughts. The video is pretty cool too, especially if you’re into artsy black-and-white shots of evil rituals happening in slow motion.

In related news, Behemoth were also recently announced as part of the initial lineup for the 2014 edition of France’s Hellfest, which will take place from June 20 through 22 (6/20-6/22). The lineup so far is huge and crazy: there’s a “huge rock band” stage, featuring Iron Maiden, Aerosmith, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, and Soundgarden, among others; a big-name thrash/black metal stage that spotlights Slayer, Death Angel, Emperor, Iced Earth, Behemoth, and more; a death metal stage that will include Death To All, Carcass, Opeth, Nile, Gorguts, Hail of Bullets, and Weekend Nachos; a smaller black metal stage topped off by Watain, Gorgoroth and 1349; a sludge/stoner stage featuring Electric Wizard, Monster Magnet, Unida, Kylesa, Godflesh, and Clutch; and a punk stage topped by Walls of Jericho, Millencolin, and Turbonegro. Wow. You can reserve tickets now, if you feel like parsing the Google-Translated ticket page.

Check out the Behemoth video and the full set of Hellfest announcements below.

Hellfest 2014 lineup to date:
Mainstage 1:
Iron Maiden
Rob Zombie
Queensryche
Therapy!
Satan
Crossfaith
Nightmare

Mainstage 2:
Slayer
Trivium
Sepultura
Death Angel
MOD
Toxic Holocaust
Fueled by Fire
Angelus Apatrida

The Altar:
Death
Kataklysm
Pungent Stench
Nocturnus AD
Loudblast
Blockheads

The Temple:
Watain
Enslaved
Turisas
Impaled Nazarene
Destroyer 666

The Valley:
Electric Wizard
Godflesh
Kylesa
Kadavar
Royal Thunder
Downfall Of Gaiia
Caspian
Conan
Mars Red Sky

The Warzone:
Walls Of Jericho
Pro-Pain
Downset.
Slapshot
Defeater
First Blood
Brutality Will Prevail
Stick Your Guns

Saturday, June 21st:
Mainstage 1:
Aerosmith
Deep Purple
Status Quo
Skid Row
Buckcherry
Walking Papers
Lez Zeppelin
Killers

Mainstage 2:
Avenged Sevenfold
Soulfly
Hatebreed
Dagoba
We Came As Romans
While She Sleeps
Of Mice and Men
Darkness Dynamite

The Altar:
Carcass
Nile
Gorguts
Hail Of Bullets
Incantation
Supuration
Weekend Nacho’s
Benighted

The Temple:
Gorgoroth
Eluveitie
Tsjuder
Shining
MGLA
Gehenna
Trollfest
Temple of Baal

The Valley:
Monster Magnet
Clutch
Acid King
Witch Mountain
Subrosa
Saviours
Herder
Hark

The Warzone:
Millencollin
7 seconds
Bl’ast!,
Misconduct
Burning Heads
Ays

Sunday, June 22nd:
Mainstage 1:
Black Sabbath
Soundgarden
Megadeth
Alter Bridge
Seether
Crowbar
Lofofora
Blue Pills

Mainstage 2:
Emperor
Iced Earth
Behemoth
Annihilator
Angra
Powerwolf
In Solitude
Scorpion Child
Year Of The Goat

The Altar:
Paradise Lost
Soilwork
The Black Dalhia Murder
Unleashed
Repulsion
Ulcerate
Obliteration

The Temple:
Vreid
Sognametal
1349
Solstafir
Equilibrium
Urfaust
Dordeduh
The Ruins Of Beverast

The Valley:
Unida
Spirit Caravan
Dozer
House Of Broken Promises
Lowrider
Zodiac
Satan’s Satyrs
Watertank

The Warzone:
Turbonegro
Floggin Molly
Misfits
Mad Sin
Last Resort
The Bones
Tagada Jones
Crushing Caspars

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