Lucifer Over Athens is Rotting Christ’s first-ever live album and the 31-track beast is a veritable feast for fans of the extreme metal veterans.
Recorded in their hometown in December 2013 in front of a rabid and vocal crowd, the two-disc set mines material from their 12-album (and counting) career and serves as both a thrilling listen and a timely reminder of just how far they’ve progressed over the past 28 years.
In fact, it’s quite fun comparing the likes of the primitive, old-school chug-fest Dive The Deepest Abyss from their ’93 debut Thy Mighty Contract to the much more complex, densely textured funeral march In Yumen/Xibalba from their most recent offering Kata Ton Demona Eaftou. Capturing all the power and pomp of their live show without excessive overdubs or studio trickery, Lucifer Over Athens is an enjoyable, career-spanning opus. The only thing missing from the experience are a few hundred heaving, sweaty bodies and a handful of spilled beers.
