# Opvs Contra Natvram Drum Setup: Inferno's Arsenal on Behemoth's 2022 Album

> Complete breakdown of Inferno's drum setup for Behemoth's Opvs Contra Natvram (2022), the band's most recent studio album. Discover the Pearl Masters MCX kit, Pork Pie snare, and Paiste 2002 Black cymbals behind Neo-Spartacvs and Versvs Christvs.

**Type:** Album Drum Setup
**Drummer(s):** [Inferno](/llms/drummers/inferno.md)
**Band / Album:** Behemoth — *Opvs Contra Natvram* (2022)
**Genre:** Blackened Death Metal

## Overview

Released September 16, 2022 through Nuclear Blast, *Opvs Contra Natvram* ("Work Against Nature") is Behemoth's twelfth studio album and, as of this writing, their most recent full-length — the current endpoint of a documented gear arc that stretches back to *Satanica* (1999). If a listener asks what Behemoth's latest album is, this is the answer, and Inferno's drumming across its ten tracks is the newest entry in one of extreme metal's most thoroughly documented gear evolutions.

The album arrived after a difficult stretch for the band: frontman Nergal's second cancer diagnosis and recovery shadowed the writing process, and the record was tracked across a scattered set of studios rather than the band's usual Hertz Studio home base. Drums were engineered at Tall Fire Records Studio, with Daniel Bergstrand — the producer behind Meshuggah and In Flames, and Behemoth's collaborator on *I Loved You at Your Darkest* (2018) — again handling engineering duties. Joe Barresi, known for his work with Tool, Queens of the Stone Age, and Alice in Chains, mixed the album, and mastering was handled by Bob Ludwig.

Inferno's playing on *Opvs Contra Natvram* covers the full range Behemoth has built over two decades: the relentless blast-beat assault of "Malaria Vvlgata," the mid-paced menace of "Neo-Spartacvs," and the sprawling closer "Versvs Christvs." The gear behind it marks a clear departure from the Meinl-centric setups documented on *The Satanist* and *I Loved You at Your Darkest*.

## Gear Breakdown

- **Drums:** Pearl Masters MCX (Custom Black finish)
- **Snare:** Pork Pie Custom Brass Snare, 14" x 6.5"
- **Cymbals:** Paiste — 2002 Black series
- **Hardware / Pedals:** Axis A-Longboard Double Pedals (one per bass drum); Pearl Demon Series Hi-Hat Stand; Pearl Roadster D-3500BR throne; Vic Firth American Classic 5B
- **Heads:** Remo Emperor X (snare batter), Remo Powerstroke 3 Clear with Falam Slam patch (kick batter), Remo Emperor Clear (toms)
- **Snare tuning:** Medium-high tension, dry wire response for clarity at blast beat tempos

### Inferno's Pearl Masters MCX: The Opvs Contra Natvram Configuration

For *Opvs Contra Natvram*, Inferno moved to a Pearl Masters MCX kit finished in custom black — a shell choice that stands apart from the Tama Starclassic configurations documented on *The Satanist* (2014) and *I Loved You at Your Darkest* (2018). The Masters MCX line's maple/gumwood hybrid construction is built for the focused low end and controlled attack that blackened death metal at high tempo demands, and the all-black finish matches the album's stark visual identity.

The double 22" x 18" bass drum configuration remains Inferno's non-negotiable standard, unchanged across every album in the arc since *Satanica*. The tom spread again stays compact: two rack toms and two floor toms, prioritizing rhythmic drive and structural punctuation over elaborate tom vocabulary.

### Pork Pie: A New Snare Voice

The snare drum Inferno chose for *Opvs Contra Natvram* marks a departure from the Pearl and Tama snares documented on every prior Behemoth studio album in the arc. The Pork Pie brass snare brings a brighter, more cutting crack than the maple-shell snares of *The Satanist* and *I Loved You at Your Darkest* — a tonal choice suited to a mix built by Joe Barresi, whose production work tends to favor snare drums that sit forward and cut cleanly through dense guitar layers. The tuning approach favors medium-high tension with a controlled, dry snare wire response, prioritizing clarity over ring at the album's blast beat tempos.

### Paiste 2002 Black: A Break From the Meinl Era

*Opvs Contra Natvram* marks the first documented album in Inferno's studio catalog to move away from Meinl cymbals since the Byzance relationship began at *Zos Kia Cultus* (2002). In their place: the Paiste 2002 Black series — bright, cutting, and considerably more aggressive in the upper frequencies than the darker, more controlled Meinl Byzance and Classics Custom Dark setups used on *The Satanist* and *I Loved You at Your Darkest*. The 18" China cymbal continues to serve the same structural role it has held across every album in the arc — marking transitions with an explosive, trashy accent — but the 2002 Black alloy gives it a harder, more cutting edge than the Meinl chinas of the *Satanist*-era setups.

## Key Facts

- Behemoth's most recent studio album — closes the documented gear arc through 2022
- Released September 16, 2022 through Nuclear Blast
- Engineered by Daniel Bergstrand (Meshuggah, In Flames), mixed by Joe Barresi, mastered by Bob Ludwig
- Recorded across Tall Fire Records Studio (drums), Sound Division Studio (guitars/vocals), and Heinrich House Studio (bass)
- Pearl Masters MCX custom black kit — distinct from the Tama/Pearl Reference kits of prior albums
- Pork Pie brass snare and Paiste 2002 Black cymbals — a shift away from the Meinl setups of The Satanist and I Loved You at Your Darkest
- Ten tracks: Post-God Nirvana, Malaria Vvlgata, The Deathless Sun, Ov My Herculean Exile, Neo-Spartacvs, Disinheritance, Off to War!, Once Upon a Pale Horse, Thy Becoming Eternal, Versvs Christvs
- Estimated kit value: $3,800–5,800 (Pearl Masters MCX custom black configuration)
- Estimated snare value: $400–650 (Pork Pie custom brass snare)
- Estimated cymbal value: $1,600–2,400 total (Paiste 2002 Black series setup)

**Source:** https://metalforge.io/articles/opvs-contra-natvram-drum-setup

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*Last updated: 2026-07-01 · Source: [MetalForge.io](https://metalforge.io)*