Although they only released two albums during their short run ('98-'02), Lisbon, Portugal based band, Sirius managed to release two absolutely stellar records, which have remained favorites of mine years after their release. While the first record, 'Aeons of Magick' was heavily keyboard based symphonic black metal in a style comparable to Limbonic Art meeting early Emperor, their follow-up and final release, 'Spectral Transition - Dimension Sirius' added a harder edged death metal quality to it that frankly sounded a lot like Zyklon's debut, 'World ov Worms,' which was released just a little over a month before this album.
Essentially what this record sounds like is a more symphonic black metal version of said Zyklon album; complete with swirling haunting symphonic keyboard choirs, various industrial sound effects, voice samples, brutal pummeling drumming, killer headbanging Morbid Angel-ish death metal riffs and low growled, raspy screamed black metal and spoken narrative vocals. The Zyklon similarities are further cemented into place by the fact that Thorbjørn Akkerhaugen produced the album and the results are a crisp and loud dynamic production, while then still Zyklon vocalist, Daemon adds his insane berserking voice to four of the songs as well both Samoth and Bård Faust make contributions to the cover version of Emperor's, 'The Majesty of the Nightsky,' which might I add is fucking incredible! Despite all that, if you consider it a negative thing at all, this record is pretty goddamn awesome!
'Spectral Transition - Dimension Sirius' really is an interesting record since it manages to straddle the borders between bloodthirsty walloping death metal and highly atmospheric symphonic black metal brilliantly, and more or less if you fancy the first records from Emperor and Zyklon than you're definitely going to enjoy this beast. Favorites are many, but I find that the album just flows through the first ten songs perfectly with tons of energy and memorability and by the time you reach that eleventh song and the band rips through the Emperor cover you know you've just experienced one great record.
As earlier mentioned the band broke up after this album and members went onto various bands, such as; Storm Legion, VS777, and Re:aktor but it was mostly drummer, bassist and keyboardist, Daniel "Vukodlack" Cardoso who was active the most with bands like, Oblique Rain, Scar for Life, The Firstborn, Head Control System and most recently as Anathema's live keyboardist.
'Spectral Transition - Dimension Sirius' is an album that deserves more attention and even if some might see it as a copy cat album I see it as nothing more than a fantastic death/black metal release that truly should be re-released someday so more people can discover it's supreme grandeur.
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