De Oppresso Liber was my introduction to Sothis, and, from its description as being derivative of Emperor could only mean one of two things: tasteful epic black metal, or Dimmu Borgir keyboard meltdown. A few seconds of the first track the answer became abundantly clear, this album was going to be a Dimmu doo-doo. The keyboards, as cliché’d s they are can actually be used tastefully (Weakling, Enslaved), so it is a bit of a mystery how Sothis could take the keyboard and make it a heaping pile of shit. If I were to use imagery to describe De Oppresso Liber I would have to go with a wizard in purple gown getting his testes ground to a pulp by a professional juicer. Essentially De Oppresso Liber is Deathcult Armageddon without Nick Barkers insane drum performance (which was, regrettably, the albums only saving grace).

But I like to give bands a second chance and see if this travesty could have been avoided. They are from L.A. essentially the driest of the dry black metal scenes. They look like goth fruits who escaped the Full Moon Mysticism rave party, which is another major bummer. Finally, the album cover looks like a Magic (the gathering) card. Ok, this disaster could not be avoided.
Aesthetics aside Sothis are a competent band, the guitar performance is in no way lacking, the drums, although triggered to hell, are pretty great. The vocals are very typical polished black metal (thanks to Shagrath and Ihsahn). The arrangements are interesting; solos are predictable but well executed.

The question really comes down to: why not buy Deathcult Armageddon? It’s a better-executed and more intricate variation on a similar theme. Sothis are just another tribute to L.A.’s disappointingly lackluster scene.