Leviathan - "True Traitor, True Whore" (2011) [Profound Lore Records]

If there were to be a book written on black metal's presence in the US, an entire volume would be dedicated to the works of one Jef Whitehead, better known as the enigmatic Wrest. Between his solo work in Leviathan and Lurker of Chalice as well as his contributions to post-punk band GiftHorse, Sunn O))), and the supergroup Twilight, Whitehead has carved his own special niche in black metal history, filled with countless hours of self-loathing, mystical, hateful music. Though Leviathan was technically ended in the mid-2000s, some shifty legal work pulled by Moribund Records gave us Massive Conspiracy Against All Life, intended to be Leviathan's final opus and, since January of this year, Whitehead has been the target of immense hate and prejudice due to an ongoing investigation concerning his then-girlfriend, potentially spelling the end of his music career. Still, he persevered, reviving Leviathan as a vehicle to express his deepest hate, culminating in the brilliant True Traitor, True Whore. After all, Jef Whitehead was betrayed, and that traitor was the truest of whores.

With True Traitor, True Whore, Whitehead has taken Leviathan to new, disgusting, awe inspiring heights. From deep within his churning black hate, TTTW shows Whitehead drawing not only from the scathing, black-as-pitch metal of which he has made for the past thirteen years, but also the gnarly, angular post-punk he had performed with GiftHorse, and even the soaring, atmospheric heights of post-hardcore, maybe not giving Leviathan a new face, but definitely highlighting influences that had lurked just beyond the fuzz throughout Leviathan's existence. An exercise in juxtaposition, TTTW is sure to crane necks and tilt heads. A shining example of Whitehead's brilliant mid-song stylistic shift, album opener "True Whorror" attacks the listener with harsh, speed-picked chords, blast beats, and croaked vocals before shifting to a mid-paced, disjointed section, heralded with spidery clean guitars, then moving into Jesus Lizard territory with bizarre chord voicings and complex syncopations. Other songs like "Brought Up To The Bottom" and "Contrary Pulse" see Whitehead embracing introspective, melodic, and, dare I say, "post-rocky" heights, bearing striking similarities to his sonic experiments on 2005's A Silhouette In Splinters. As we have seen on previous recordings, Whitehead is no stranger to technical drumming, and his prowess is shown especially in "Her Circle Is The Noose," whose complex drum patterns rival even those of the world's finest jazz percussionists. Immediate, passionate, and filled with some of Leviathan's "catchiest" moments, Jef Whitehead's second resurrection of Leviathan proves to be his most effective yet.

A product of Jef Whitehead's indescribable rage and betrayal, True Traitor True Whore stands as one of Whitehead's most memorable and enjoyable recordings. With stunning studio work done by Chicago's own Sanford Parker, True Traitor's cleaner approach will definitely act as a "jumping off" point (suicide pun intended) for new Leviathan fans, but here's hoping that these newcomers find just as much enjoyment in Verrater as the rest of us do. True Traitor, True Whore is available for preorder today from the incredible Profound Lore Records.

Let the hate enfold you.

-Jon