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Behemoth reportedly being detained in Russia w/ visa issues

By Ian Chainey

Behemoth at Irving Plaza in 2014 (more by Caroline Harrison)
Godflesh

Polish blackened death metal thelemites Behemoth , who were just in NYC as part of the Metal Alliance tour, are reportedly detained in Russia, according to singer Nergal in a dispatch the hit the band’s Facebook page this morning. The original note is in Polish, so here’s the rough translation:

We’ve been stopped by the [Russian] immigration services for ‘wrong visas.’ When I said that we will not move an inch from the club without someone from the Polish embassy, they threatened to force us out. They took us in a bus, accompanied by 10 officers, to the building of Federal Migration Service. We tried to reach the Polish embassy in Jekaterinburg but no one is answering the phone.

If possible — please copy this message and pass it everywhere you can. We may expect a multi-hour hearing.

The concert is off for sure. The only thing we want is to get back to the hotel safely and then — to Poland. No matter how hard we try — we cannot pass it all.

So, that’s terrifying. Russia may not exactly be the best place for a band that has previously courted Satanic controversy. Behemoth have flirted with the performance banhammer in their native country due to their Bible-destroying antics. Hopefully the “bad visas” bit is only about bad visas.

Obviously, more to come when the bigger picture gets clearer. Stream a track from the band’s latest, the subtly titled The Satanist below.

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