Ithyphallic (album)

Infobox Album
Name = Ithyphallic
Type = studio
Artist = Nile


Released = July 17, 2007 (United States)
July 20, 2007 (Europe)
Recorded = February 26, 2007-April 2007 at Sound Lab Studios, Columbia, South Carolina
Genre = Technical death metal Brutal death metal
Length = 49:48
Label = Nuclear Blast
Producer = Neil Kernon
Reviews = *JustPressPlay.net rating-10|8 [http://justpressplay.net/music-reviews/38-reviews/1153-nile-.html link]
Last album = "Legacy of the Catacombs"
(2007)
This album = "Ithyphallic"
(2007)
Next album =
Misc = Singles
Name = Ithyphallic
Type = studio
Single 1 = Papyrus Containing the Spell to Preserve Its Possessor Against Attacks from He Who Is in the Water
Single 1 date = June 22, 2007

"Ithyphallic" is the fifth studio album by American death metal band Nile. It was released on July 17, 2007 through Nuclear Blast, in both standard and digipak formats. It is the band's first album released on Nuclear Blast, since signing with them in May 2006. It is also the band's first album since "Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-Ka" not to feature notes explaining the context of the lyrics. 1000 limited edition copies of the album were released in a pyramid-shaped box containing the disc, several images, a certificate of ownership and a hidden scroll containing the lyrics and liner notes from the album.

Promotion

Throughout June and July, Nuclear Blast Records held a special contest to allow several fans to be able to listen to "Ithyphallic". The rules were that they would have to be able to decipher a secret hieroglyphic message. If they won, they were given an email containing a link to a website where the album was posted for the free listening. On July 7, the contest ended, and the answer was revealed to be "papyrus."

Track listing

# "What Can Be Safely Written" – 8:15
# "As He Creates So He Destroys" – 4:36
# "Ithyphallic" – 4:40
# "Papyrus Containing the Spell to Preserve Its Possessor Against Attacks from He Who Is in the Water" – 2:56
# "Eat of the Dead" – 6:29
# "Laying Fire Upon Apep" – 3:25
# "The Essential Salts" – 3:51
# "The Infinity of Stone" – 2:04
# "The Language of the Shadows" – 3:30
# "Even the Gods Must Die" – 10:01

Bonus tracks

#

"As He Creates So He Destroys" (Instrumental; Digipak bonus track) – 2:56
#

"Papyrus Containing the Spell to Preserve Its Possessor Against Attacks From He Who Is in the Water" (Instrumental; Digipak bonus track) – 2:51

Historical and fictional references

* "As He Creates So He Destroys", "Eat of the Dead", "The Essential Salts", "The Language of the Shadows" and "What Can Be Safely Written" are taken from Canadian occultist Donald Tyson's "Necronomicon: The Wanderings of Alhazred" [http://www.decibelmagazine.com/features/aug2007/nile.aspx] , itself a tribute to the fictional mythology of H.P. Lovecraft.
* "Ithyphallic" is a word that means "to have the penis erect." This refers to many Egyptian gods of fertility, as this is how they were represented.
* "Laying Fire Upon Apep" is a reference to one of the methods described in the "Books of Apophis" that Ra would use to overcome the Fiend Apep in their nightly duels.
* "Papyrus Containing the Spell to Preserve Its Possessor Against Attacks From He Who Is in the Water" is a reference to a spell from "The Book of the Dead".
* "The Essential Salts" is also a reference to the salts used to preserve the corpse of a Pharaoh in mummification.

Chart positions

Personnel

* Karl Sanders – guitar, vocals
* Dallas Toler-Wade – guitar, bass, vocals
* George Kollias – drums
* Chris Lollis – additional vocals