text: Reign of Light - Review by Corimngul - Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives
  Samael > Reign of Light > Reviews > Corimngul
  Heavy guitar-based electronica. - 87%
  Corimngul, September 21st, 2005
  Samael is quite a band, betraying their fan bases all over and over again. At least it indicates some creativity. Personally I feel this is Samael's best piece of work so far, but then I've never really cared for kvlt black metal and the in-between albums that I feel are totally pointless (i.e. Passage). Now, the problem in describing Samael's music is that it is so unique. Basically it consists of the steady drumming of industrial metal, played out by very competently programmed machines.
  The guitars, electrically buzzing form the melody onto which the guitarist's brother's thick synths are attached. The bass is in the background, and the vocals are almost spoken with the certain roughness that I imagine Vorph caught back in the growling days. Oh well, the keyboards played by Xytraguptor/Xytras/Xy (next time he must change his name to X). They are really odd, and make Samael the special band they are.
  They play out a virtual drapery of electronic chords that I find very compelling. It's dark and it is heavy in a very skilled way, the way only masters of industrial music can succeed in, with the drum beat just pressing and the synthal sounds sweeping like sonic waves of different density. I hate using scientific metaphors, but it really feels that way. First the drums producing an undeniably heavy, dense force, shoving around the keyboard chords like light gas molecules. On top of that are the vocals, dark and somehow robotic – constantly mangling out from the speakers with its dark but inspiring message. Samael is a band that must be experienced to be understood, and the music is well worth the trouble one might have finding Reign of Light.