IMPERATOR – The Time Before Time, CD

Imperator emerged from Poland in 1983, during the final decade of the Cold War. Founded by the fifteen-year-old Bariel, the band developed its own strain of “Speed Black Metal,” shaped in part by the oppressive political climate of the Eastern Bloc.

Following several early line-up changes, Imperator recorded the *Endless Sacrifice* demo in 1987, gaining recognition beyond Poland. *Deathlive* and *Eternal Might* followed over the next two years. During this period, Bariel befriended Dead and Euronymous of Mayhem. He was invited to play in Dead’s band The Moon, while Euronymous intended to release Imperator’s debut album through Deathlike Silence Productions. The plan never materialised.

Instead, *The Time Before Time* was released in 1991 by the obscure Polish label Faceless Productions. With virtually no promotion and appearing only on vinyl as CDs were rapidly taking over, the album never received the attention it deserved.

The record remains a distinctive document of early Eastern European death/black metal, built upon abrupt tempo changes, unorthodox riffing, tremolo-bar guitar leads and Bariel’s gruff vocals.

Nuclear War Now! Productions now presents *The Time Before Time* on CD and cassette, alongside its first-ever vinyl reissue. The LP includes a bonus 7” with two tracks recorded following the band’s 1993 reunion. Extensive liner notes by Bariel and the original artwork by P. Szymaniak complete this edition of an overlooked relic of Poland’s formative extreme metal underground.