Video: Reactivated CEREMONIAL OATH Performs At France's HELLFEST

Fan-filmed video footage of the reactivated CEREMONIAL OATH — Sweden's pioneers of twisted melodic death metal — performing the song "Ceremonial Oath" on June 21 at Hellfest in Clisson, France can be seen below.

CEREMONIAL OATH is:

Oscar Dronjak (HAMMERFALL): Guitar, vocals
Anders Iwers (TIAMAT): Guitar
Jesper Strömblad (IN FLAMES, DIMENSION ZERO): Bass
Markus Nordberg (THE CHUCK NORRIS EXPERIMENT): Drums

CEREMONIAL OATH released its legendary debut album, "The Book Of Truth", as a digital download in North America on April 16 via Century Media Records. Besides the album tracks, the download also includes all tracks of the super-rare demos "Wake The Dead" and "Black Sermon" (on which CEREMONIAL OATH are still performing under the band's previous moniker DESECRATOR) as well as the two tracks of the legendary "Lost Name Of God" seven-inch single (originally released on Corpse Grinder Records in 1992).

"The Book Of Truth" does not really match the usual melodic approach many bands from Gothenburg scene established between the heydays of the scene from 1994 to 1999. Being neither pure Gothenburg-ish melodic death metal nor typical old-school Swedish death metal in the Stockholm vein, but more a fine mélange of both worlds spiced up with some technical finesse a la MORBID ANGEL and NOCTURNUS, "The Book Of Truth" has justly become a real classic of unique death metal throughout the years. Still, to this day, the sound of CEREMONIAL OATH has remained surprisingly fresh and unique.

Niklas Sundin (DARK TRANQUILLITY),designer of the first "Lost Name Of God" seven-inch single stated: "The very first DARK TRANQUILLITY show was played 22 years ago, together with CEREMONIAL OATH (who then went by the name DESECRATOR),and for a few years we would often share the stage in the then-miniscule Gothenburg metal scene. I always felt that the band never got the attention and credit they deserved for their raw and quirky death metal, so it's about time that these rare recordings finally get released on a bigger scale and made available to a new generation of fans as well as nostalgia freaks like myself. Storm the gates!”

Anders Björler (ex-THE HAUNTED, AT THE GATES): "Me and Jonas [Björler] did the logo and demo cover artwork back in 1990 for the band DESECRATOR. They were so disappointed and upset they had to form another band and start over. CEREMONIAL OATH was born."

"The Book Of Truth" track listing:

CD1/LP1: The Album

01. Prologue: Sworn To Avenge
02. Chapter I: The Invocator
03. Chapter II: For I Have Sinned / The Praise
04. Chapter III: Enthroned
05. Chapter IV: Only Evil Prevails
06. Chapter V: Thunderworld (Welcome To Forever)
07. Chapter VI: Lords Of Twilight
08. Chapter VII: Ceremonial Oath
09. Chapter VIII: The Lost Name Of God
10. Chapter IX: The Book Of Truth
11. Chapter X: Hellbound (instrumental)

CD2/LP2: The Demos

01. Intro: The Hour Between Darkness And Dawn
02. Remains Of Death
03. Force Of Habit
04. A Nocturnal Predator
05. Into The Abyss Of Hell
06. The Invocator
07. Necrosis
08. The Lost Name Of God
09. For I Have Sinned / The Praise

Tracks 1-4 taken from the "Wake The Dead" demo (1990, performing as DESECRATOR)
Tracks 5-7 taken from the "Black Sermon" demo (1990, performing as DESECRATOR)
Tracks 8, 9 taken from the "Lost Name Of God" seven-inch single (1992)

All tracks on CD2/LP2 are released on the CD for the first time. "Wake The Dead" and "Black Sermon" are released on vinyl for the first time.

CEREMONIAL OATH played its first show in 20 years on January 4 at the inaugural edition of the Gothenburg Sound Festival at Trädgår'n in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Photo credit: Daniel Falk of FramedNoise.com (courtesy of CEREMONIAL OATH's Facebook page)