The original EP by Norway's Gehenna is definitely an ear-catching, interesting piece of work that showcased the band's black metal leanings mixed with a very somber symphonic atmosphere. Each of these songs are relatively slow, embellished with fairly subtle keyboards that belong well in the mix. On a production note - since I seem to be heading there - the guitars are a bit weaker than what the music might prefer. Vocally, Gehenna travels the tried and true route of a raspy man growling out the fires/gods/conquer-something lyrics. Overall, First Spell is nothing unexpected but rather fairly well delivered and enjoyable.

Review by John Chedsey

Review date: 10/1999

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Sometimes you just have to give these black metal bands a little bit of time to warm up. Gehenna, upon initial listen, is quite akin to hearing any sympho-syntho epic black metal band with that tough evil guy growling and screaming ever so echoing in the background. Those fuzzed out guitars and grandscale keyboards don't really add a whole lot of massive distinctiveness to things. Note I said "upon initial listen". Each time I've played this album since it has grown considerably in appeal. Within the mayhem of their chaos exists a multi-layered musical composition that does truly give you the chance to hear something new nearly every time. Gehenna also realizes that a good old fashioned metal riff should not be ignored, as the very smart guitar line at the beginning of "A Myth..." demonstrates. There indeed is a lot of common ground with other Cacophonous artists, including of course Dimmu Borgir. Gehenna however doesn't allow a huge amount of the overzealous need to let keyboards dominate into the songwriting process. Instead, the intelligent production, memorable yet harsh songs and old fashioned talent make this an above average record that anyone into the epic or symphonic side of black metal should check out.

Review by John Chedsey

Review date: 04/1999

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Black Seared Heart is a hardcore Gehenna fan (is there such thing?) only CD that compiles several early recordings onto one handy shiny slab of plastic. The first seven tracks are from Gehenna's first demo, which apparently only saw fit to issue one hundred copies. The recording is appropriately demo-esque, with a very mild guitar tone and unassuming sound overall. While better than most early black metal recordings, the sound isn't quite as fleshed out as it would be on proper Gehenna releases. The band had already firmly encroached the world of keyboards to add a smoother edge to their sound. "Angelwings and Ravenclaws", which reappeared on the band's EP First Spell, is easily one of the best tracks on the demo. Tracks eight and nine are two songs resurrected from an abandoned studio session where the vocals and keyboards were added later on. Neither track is anything particularly special and suffers from a fairly weak sound. The very last song is from a rehearsal tape that pre-dates the demo. Obviously the sound here is the worst of anything else on this CD. Black Seared Heart suffers from not really having any relevance to a hardcore music collector's needs. While the original demo tapes are somewhat interesting, Black Seared Heart is nothing that requires one to dole out the dollars for the disc.

Review by John Chedsey

Review date: 11/1999

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