Karl Sanders is best known as the mainman behind Egyptian extreme metallers Nile. His latest solo release, Saurian Exorcisms, continues in the vein of Nile’s age old themes but expands on it in a way that many Nile fans would certainly reject. This is very musical, often ambient, and tremendously exploratory album that is more like a ceremony than an audio assault. The album includes Sanders on the baglama saz, glissentar, acoustic guitars, guitar synth, keyboards, drums, percussion, and vocals with Mike Breazeale handling vocal and chant duties.
While Saurian Exorcisms may catch you off guard at first, don’t like its slow tempo and dark ambience fool you. The music here is tremendously interesting and the kind you can easily get lost in when trying to refocus your spiritual and mental self. Most of the instrumentation is unfamiliar to me however I find a lot of cohesion with American Indian artists such as Bill Miller (his instrumental work) and Robert Windpony. I would imagine the history of both also have a lot of commonalities spiritually and intentionally. The music is here is very dynamic, flawlessly journeying between meditation and celebration. The heartfelt screams in “Shira Gula Pazu” will send chills down your spine while “Preliminary Purification Before the Calling of Inanna” and “Contemplate this On the Tree of Woe” are mood-setting and simply breathtaking.
It’s hard to choose highlights from an album such as Saurian Exorcisms. Each track seems very dependent on what comes both before and after, making it a much more single minded journey than most albums from artists whose day job is playing Extreme Metal. If you are looking for something completely unique that is steeped in tradition, or if you enjoy exotic instrumentation and near-spiritual ambeince than you should definitely check out Karl Sander’s latest work.
Reviewed by Mark Fisher
