Judas Iscariot — Of Great Eternity

Of Great Eternity was the third full-length album from infamous US black metal project Judas Iscariot. Originally released back in 1997 on Elegy Records, the album saw the one-man project slowing down its sound in places, as well as adding in a few more grimly melodic touches here ‘n’ there- though don’t worry this is still very much grimly raging and baying USBM. Here from Moribund Records is the first reissue of the album since 2003, with it appearing in the form of a CD release.

If you only have just a passing interest in the USBM scene, I’m sure you’ll be aware of the name  Judas Iscariot. Formed in 1992 by Akhenaten( aka DeKalb, Illinois based Andrew Jay Harris) who played everything. The band was one of the first key US black metal bands, going onto influence/ inspired the likes of Leviathan, Xasthur, Krieg and many others. In total the band released five albums over its fairly short career- 1996 ‘s And The Cold Earth Slept Below, Thy Dying Light also from 96, 1997’s Of Great Eternity, 1999’s Distant In Solitary Night, and Heaven In Flames also from 1999. In 2002 Harris moved from the US to German, and ended the project once and for all. 

Of Great Eternity is a six-track album, which clocks in just shy of the forty-one-minute mark. Each of the track runs between three and nine minutes, with their paces often nicely shifting between mid-pace, slower, and moments of more speeding 'n' cluttering darkness.  The album kicks off with “...The Heavens Drop with Human Gore..., this opens in great moody and chilling fashion with a slow bounding riff. Fairly soon in kicks a more speeding tremolo riff which is all clamouring ‘n’ hissing drums, grimly raging guitars, and vocals that are a blend of harsh whisper and black growl. As the track goes on the pace effective shifts between blackly tolling mid-pace riffing- which at points has some almost death rock touches about it,  back to briefer speeding moments, and slower black guitar fed back edged moments. It’s a great opener, perfectly mixing atmospheric and bounding, at points speeding blackness.

As we move on through the record we come to the shortest track here “..for the Last Judgement Draweth Nigh...” which is a great mix of smarting drums, mid-paced roaming grim almost=blacked punk tipped central riffs, bayed grunts and a great feeling of malevolent grimness.  The album exit with its longest number the nine and half minutes of “...Our Sons Shall Rule the Empire of the Sea...” here we move sweepingly- yet blacked harmonic mid-pace moments. Onto slugging 'n' hissing semi discordant churns, though to sudden rushes of more clamouring and blackly bone-rattling speed. There are some great moments at more stretched and blackly baying vocalising here too.

Of Great Eternity may not be held in the reverence as the first two Judas Iscariot albums, but there’s no doubt it’s an effective USBM album. It nicely blends bleak-at-points melodic riff craft, with more galloping and clattering moments of fired up blacked metal grimness. So it’s great to have this back in print, and I look forward to the other Judas Iscariot reissues coming up soon from Moribund Records.