''The Covenant Progress'' is the first full-length album by the Swedish group

Crimson Moonlight Crimson Moonlight is a Sweden, Swedish unblack metal band. The band was formed in the summer of 1997 with the mere intention of recording a primitive old school black metal demo and playing one show before breaking up. However, the breakup neve ...

. The album was released in 2003 on Rivel Records. In 2010, ''

HM Magazine ''HM Magazine'' is a monthly, digital and print on demand publication focusing on hard music and alternative culture of interest to Christians. It is headquartered in Houston, Texas. The magazine states that its goal is to "honestly and accurate ...

'' ranked it #52 on the Top 100 Christian metal albums of all time list with Beck stating that it is "Well-produced

symphonic black metal Symphonic black metal is a subgenre of black metal that emerged in the 1990s and incorporates symphonic and orchestral elements. Notable symphonic black metal bands include Cradle Of Filth, Dimmu Borgir, Emperor, and Carach Angren. History ...

that rivals the best any other band (Christian or secular) in this subgenre can offer."

Recording history

''The Covenant Progress'' was recorded at Dream Factory by

Carl Johan Grimmark Carl Johan Grimmark (born October 14, 1977 ) is a Swedish guitarist. He has appeared with several influential Christian metal bands including Narnia, Saviour Machine, and Rob Rock. He recently joined the band Beautiful Sin in 2006, he has also ...

and at Studio Resound by Tomas Johansson in January and February 2003. The album was produced by Tomas Johansson and Crimson Moonlight. ''The Covenant Progress'' was mastered at Criteria Mastering by Tomas Johansson. The album was released March 14, 2003. While the album still contains some keyboards, the musical direction went for a more melodic black metal style from the previous EP. "Eternal Emperor" is a revised version of that EP's title song. The lyrics talk poetically about Scandinavian wintery landscapes. "The Covenant" is an atmospheric, instrumental keyboard-driven song. ''The Covenant Progress'' received a positive reception and several magazines and online sites gave it good reviews. For example, the biggest Finnish metal music website Imperiumi.net credits the band for "playing black metal better than most of their anti-Christian colleagues." The same reviewer writes that the debut album "''The Covenant Progress'' may not be a masterpiece but it is still damn good melodic black metal." By 2005 the album had sold over 2300 copies, making it the bands by far most successful release.

Track listing

#"Mist of the Spiritual Dimension" - 04:11 #"The Pilgrimage" - 05:29 #"Path of Pain" - 07:32 #"Thy Wilderness" - 06:35 #"Eternal Emperor" - (revised version) 03:48 #"A Painting in Dark" - 04:52 #"Eyes of Beauty" - 04:48 #"A Thorn in My Heart" - 05:55 #"The Covenant" - 07:03

Personnel

*Simon “Pilgrim” Rosén - vocals *Petter Stenmarker - guitar, vocals *Per Sundberg - guitar *Hubertus Liljegren - bass, vocals *Gustav Elowsson - drums

References

Crimson Moonlight albums 2003 debut albums {{2000s-black-metal-album-stub