| IX Equilibrium | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 15, 1999 | |||
| Recorded | October 1998 – January 1999 | |||
| Studio | Akkerhaugen Lydstudio (Akkerhaugen, Norway) | |||
| Genre | Symphonic black metal | |||
| Length | 44:01 | |||
| Label | Candlelight Century Media | |||
| Producer | Thorbjørn Akkerhaugen | |||
| Emperor chronology | ||||
| ||||
IX Equilibrium is the third studio album by the Norwegian black metal band Emperor, released on March 15, 1999 in Europe, and on April 27, 1999 in the US, through Candlelight Records.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Chronicles of Chaos | 7/10 [2] |
Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic describes the album as a "sonic onslaught of nearly impenetrable proportions". [1] He noted that drummer Trym "doesn't so much keep time as pummel his kit incessantly", while guitarists Ihsahn and Samoth "contribute an equally oppressive wall of sound laced with keyboard textures so demonic they were seemingly concocted by the great horned one himself." [1] He concluded, "Far from a masterpiece, but hardly a stinker either, IX Equilibrium falls quite short of the group's earlier albums through sheer lack of diversity, and will prove indigestible to all but the most committed black metal fans." [1]
In 2021, it was named one of the 20 best metal albums of 1999 by Metal Hammer magazine. [3] In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked the album's opening track, "Curse You All Men!", Number Forty-two on their list of "The 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Songs" [4]
All lyrics are written by Ihsahn
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Curse You All Men!" | Ihsahn, Samoth | 4:41 |
| 2. | "Decrystallizing Reason" | Ihsahn, Samoth | 6:23 |
| 3. | "An Elegy of Icaros" | Ihsahn | 6:39 |
| 4. | "The Source of Icon E" | Ihsahn, Samoth | 3:43 |
| 5. | "Sworn" | Ihsahn, Samoth | 4:30 |
| 6. | "Nonus Aequilibrium" | Ihsahn | 5:49 |
| 7. | "The Warriors of Modern Death" | Ihsahn | 5:00 |
| 8. | "Of Blindness & Subsequent Seers" | Ihsahn, Samoth | 6:48 |
| 9. | "Outro" (Hidden track) | 0:28 | |
| Total length: | 43:33 | ||
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 10. | "Curse You All Men!" (live at The Astoria, London July 1999) | 4:34 |
| 11. | "Sworn" (remixed by Ulver at Endless Studios) | 5:39 |
Emperor is a Norwegian black metal band formed in 1991 by guitarist and vocalist Ihsahn and drummer Samoth. The group split up in 2001, but reunited from 2005 to 2007 for a few festival dates and brief US tours, and again reunited in 2013 to 2014. Emperor reformed for the third time in 2016.
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Samoth is a Norwegian guitarist and multi-instrumentalist in the country's black metal scene. He is well known for his distinct guitar work and drumming in the band Emperor, as well as his formation of the death metal band Zyklon. In very early Emperor releases, he was called Samot, and with the formation of Zyklon he became known as Zamoth. Samoth was the owner of the record label Nocturnal Art Productions and had a close relationship with Candlelight Records.
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