Having brought their unique electro-black metal vision to a stylistic zenith on 1996's spectacular
Passage, there was really no way for Switzerland's
Samael to go but down -- and down they went with an efficient but quite unremarkable follow-up in 1999's
Eternal. Ironically, by achieving a more seamless blend of its predecessor's disparate sonic elements -- savage black metal, pulsing techno and industrial elements, orchestral backdrops, etc. --
Eternal's songs largely nullified the striking contrasts that had made previous efforts so special to begin with. One need look no further than ho-hum exercises like
"Year Zero," "Ailleurs," and
"Nautilus & Zeppelin" for proof, and very infrequent exceptions to this rule like
"Supra Karma" and
"Infra Galaxia" only helped to drive the point home by prioritizing those contrasts more clearly. Also less than impressive, the nearly comatose
"Together" (clearly inspired by Swedish goth deathsters
Tiamat) dragged its leaden chorus through the muck for what felt like an eternity, and several programmed drumbeats spread throughout seemed to have been lifted right out of
ZZ Top's
Eliminator. But the late-album oddity
"Being" did show a belated creative spark by mixing honky tonk piano with sarcastically snazzy death metal grunting, which was at least good for a well-needed laugh. In the end, however,
Eternal wound up disappointing expectations that had been raised inordinately high by
Samael's most recent albums, sending the group into a career tailspin it would only emerge from some five years later. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia
