The Great Mass is the eighth studio album by Greek death metal band Septicflesh. It was recorded between July–September 2010 in Devasoundz (Greece) and The Abyss (Sweden) and produced by Peter Tägtgren. The orchestration was written by Christos Antoniou and recorded by the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. Upon release, The Great Mass received universal acclaim from critics. In 2021, it was elected by Metal Hammer as the 9th best symphonic metal album of all time.[13]

The Great Mass
Studio album by
Released18 April 2011
RecordedJuly–September 2010
StudioDevasoundz Studios (Athens, Greece), Studio Abyss (Ludvika, Sweden), Smecky Studios (Prague, Czech Republic)
GenreSymphonic metal, death metal[1]
Length43:35
LabelSeason of Mist
ProducerPeter Tägtgren, Septic Flesh
Septicflesh chronology
Communion
(2008)
The Great Mass
(2011)
Titan
(2014)
Alternative cover
Jewel case version
Singles from The Great Mass
  1. "The Vampire from Nazareth"
    Released: December 24, 2010
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Chronicles of Chaos9.5/10[2]
Metal Archives84%[3]
Sputnikmusic[4]
Angry Metal Guy[5]
Metal Storm9/10[6]
Ultimate Guitar Archive9.2/10[7]
Subexistance9/10[8]
Lords of Metal95%[9]
Spirit of Metal webzine8.5/10[10]
Revolver[11]
Rock'n'World5.7/10[12]

Track listing

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All lyrics written by Sotiris V., all music composed by Septicflesh, symphonic tracks performed by the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra.

No.TitleLength
1."The Vampire from Nazareth"4:08
2."A Great Mass of Death"4:46
3."Pyramid God"5:13
4."Five-Pointed Star"4:33
5."Oceans of Grey"5:11
6."The Undead Keep Dreaming"4:29
7."Rising"3:16
8."Apocalypse"3:55
9."Mad Architect"3:36
10."Therianthropy"4:28

Personnel

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Septicflesh
  • Christos Antoniou - lead guitar, orchestrations
  • Sotiris Anunnaki V - clean vocals, rhythm guitar
  • Seth Siro Anton - Brutal vocals, bass, artwork
  • Fotis Benardo - drums, percussion
Additional musicians
  • Philharmonic Orchestra And Choir Of Prague
    • Stanislav Mistr - choir master
    • Adam Klemens - orchestra conductor
  • Androniki Skoula (Chaostar) - mezzo-soprano
  • Iliana Tsakiraki (Enemy Of Reality) - soprano
  • George Diamantopoulos (Chaostar) - kaval, yaylı tambur
Production
  • Fotis Benardo - sound engineering
  • George Emmanuel - sound engineering
  • Steve Venardo - sound engineering
  • Jan Holzner - sound engineering
  • Michal Hradisky - sound engineering
  • Peter Tägtgren - producer, mixing
  • Jonas Kjellgren - mastering
  • Jon Simvonis - photography
  • Petr Pycha - music contractor, recording manager

Charts

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Chart (2011) Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP)[14] 132

Release history

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Formats Region Date Label
CD Europe April 18, 2011[15] Season of Mist
CD North America April 19, 2011[15] Season of Mist
CD Japan September 21, 2011[16] Nippon Columbia

References

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  1. ^ Best Death Metal Album of Each Year Since 1985
  2. ^ "CoC : Septicflesh - The Great Mass : Review". Chroniclesofchaos.com. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  3. ^ "Septicflesh - The Great Mass - Reviews - Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives". Metal-archives.com. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  4. ^ "Septicflesh - The Great Mass (album review 3) - Sputnikmusic". Sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  5. ^ "Septic Flesh - The Great Mass Review". Angrymetalguy.com. 13 April 2011. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Septicflesh - The Great Mass review - Metal Storm". Metalstorm.net. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  7. ^ "Septic Flesh: The Great Mass Review". Ultimate-guitar.com. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  8. ^ "Septic Flesh – The Great Mass". Subexistance.com. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  9. ^ "Review Septic Flesh - The Great Mass". Lordsofmetal.nl. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  10. ^ "Septicflesh : The Great Mass". Spirit-of-metal.com. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  11. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-07-05. Retrieved 2014-06-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. ^ "Septicflesh - The Great Mass Review - Thrashpit.com". Rocknworld.com. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  13. ^ Davies, Hywel; Dome, Malcolm; Goodman, Eleanor; Chantler, Chris; Gordon, Connie; Grady, Spencer; Rees, Adam; Selzer, Jonathan (17 November 2021). "The 25 best symphonic metal albums". Metal Hammer. Future plc. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  14. ^ "Les charts français". Chartsinfrance.net (in French). Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  15. ^ a b "Septicflesh, Codex Omega album, Symphonic Death Metal (news, biography, releases, downloads, line-up, tour dates) - Season of Mist, Metal Label". Season-of-mist.com. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  16. ^ "セプティックフレッシュ / ザ・グレイト・マス - 商品情報 - 日本コロムビアオフィシャルサイト". Columbia.jp. Retrieved 8 September 2017.