Nile on the death
Death metal-meisters make long-awaited return
There is death metal and then there is Nile. Formed in 1993 in Greenville South Carolina, the band is known for their dedicated lyrical and musical style, which is inspired by Egyptology and the works of H. P. Lovecraft.
Now 10 studio albums deep into their career, the death metalmeisters Nile are making their long-awaited return to Aotearoa this October to satiate the appetites of fans who have been champing at the bit since the pandemic forced the cancellation of their previously scheduled visit in 2019.
Set to make amends for things totally beyond their control Nile is keen to unleash their inimitable and brutal brand of death metal on their eagerly awaiting audience.
Fronted by founding member Karl Sanders, Nile have continued to craft unsparingly ferocious and bone-crushingly heavy anthems over their time as a band.
Devastatingly incontestable, Nile’s technical ferocity showed utterly zero signs of diminishing with their ninth studio album Vile Nilotic Rites (the one we ‘missed out’ on).
Containing 11 songs that are as sharp as obsidian blades and as heavy as nine Nubian pyramids, the rulers have instilled a hammer blow of god-like heaviness.
Tenth album The Underworld Awaits Us Al has garnered similar praise, such as in this blurb from JB-HIFI - Throughout its 11 pummelling tracks and intricate interludes, Nile masters full-tilt speed and ferocious musicality. Thirty years into their heavy reign, The Underworld Awaits Us All proves that Nile is marching onward and undoubtedly upward, bleeding metal for their fandom for as long as the sands of time will allow.
So, what can we expect to hear from the lads on the night?
Whatever they choose to treat us with, one thing is for sure - it will be death metal mayhem at its highest level.
Renowned for such great songs as The Howling of the Jinn, Black Seeds of Vengeance, Defiling the Gates of Ishtar, Sarcophagus, Sacrifice Unto Sebek, Kafir and Call to Destruction, as well as newer offerings such as Long Shadows of Dread, Vile Nilotic Rites and the ‘song with the longest title’ contender - Chapter for Not Being Hung Upside Down on a Stake in the Underworld and Made to Eat Feces by the Four Apes, it’s hard to know what they’ll front up with on the night.
Remembering too that awesome tracks such as Lashed to the Slave Stick, 4th Arra of Dagon, In the Name of Amun and Ithyphalic have oft been known to make the cut.
Drawing from their specialised inspirations, they’ve established their own new themes for technical death metal to instil the power of the ancient gods in all who witness them.
The time has surfaced to reacquaint diehard New Zealand fans with Nile’s saurian whirlwind and provocative funerary spells.
Nile at the recently reconfigured Whammy! – the home run is yours for the scoring.