Diabolus Incarnate—the symphonic extreme metal project of Dieter Engel from the U.K. by way of South Africa—released their SOL EP back in April to destroy expectations and ear drums. The powerful EP has already won over a number of converts to the Diabolus Incarnate fandom, and now the mastermind of the project gives some more details on the meanings and histories behind the album’s four tracks. Check out what Engel had to say about the EP and each individual track below.
SOL
Diabolus Incarnate began in Johannesburg, South Africa, as my solo project and now operates from London, U.K., as an international collaborative project. That earlier period included the independent 2015 Decomposition demo and a cover of “The Phantom of the Opera.”
SOL is the first chapter of the SOL-MOND-ERDE cycle: sun, moon, and earth. I build the orchestral architecture first, then reinforce it with blackened vocals, aggressive riffing, dense low end, and blast-driven drums. I brought the original songs, lyrics and arrangements, while Fabio Bartoletti wrote and performed his solos, and Eugene Ryabchenko pushed the drums beyond the demos. These four songs deal with anger, guilt, death, and consequence, but the thread connecting them is simple: Face the truth and keep going.
- Upon the Bloodshed Throne
This opens SOL at its most violent and tense. The riffs and orchestra keep tightening until the ending collapses into regret, following the shape of a fight: pressure, impact, and the wounded comedown. Lyrically, it concerns two people whose arguments become physical; it is not presented as a literal account of one person’s relationship.
The bloodshed throne is the damage they created together, while “no crowns, no thrones” strips away pride and excuses. The final confession does not ask for forgiveness. It simply refuses to hide what happened, establishing the EP’s central idea that actions have consequences and honesty can begin change.
- Acceptance
Acceptance is SOL‘s most spacious track. It begins quietly, grows into a huge middle, and fades into something calm but still sad, with layered voices and Fabio’s solo carrying the emotional weight. The song looks at death without pretending it is not there.
Anger, shame, and pride will mean nothing once we are gone, while “building thrones out of spite” means constructing a life around resentment. The narrator accepts that life is short, and the music may outlive its creator. This is not surrender or sudden peace; it is the moment when the fight begins to quiet, and the truth can finally be faced.
- Sin
“Sin” is the EP at its most relentless. Its dense blackened death metal attack leaves almost no relief because the words are meant to keep landing. The lyrics target moral performance and complicity: “dressing the wounded while crowning the knife” means helping victims publicly while rewarding what harmed them, and “outrage is rented” describes anger borrowed for appearances.
The idea that every hand is marked by what it allows means silence can make us responsible too. The first two songs turn honesty inward; Sin points it outward without exempting me or the listener. Empty words mean nothing when our actions protect the opposite.
- Human, All Too Human
This is SOL‘s darkest and most ceremonial piece, moving from keys and choirs into an almost apocalyptic peak before ending on a sadder note. The orchestra creates the scale, while Fabio’s solo brings the focus back to the person inside it.
Lyrically, it is about a man who appears strong while falling apart internally. The “mask of manhood” is the pressure to act tough and certain when he feels neither. Once the labels are removed; he is simply a damaged person who still chooses to live. The EP ends by admitting that nobody is a perfect hero or complete monster; we are flawed and still capable of continuing.
Buy or stream SOL here. Follow Diabolus Incarnate on Facebook and Instagram for future updates.
Photo courtesy of Diabolus Incarnate
