By John Bedard
Black metal is one of my favourite genres. Inherent to its design there is so much passion woven into the music. I fully understand that it is not for everyone, but it is absolutely for me. If someone were to ask me what black metal is, this album is a nice example of what to expect. It is textbook black metal. For some that might mean it does not feel like it does enough to stand out and I could see that as, at times, I felt the same way but that really is not fair. Sure, it is somewhat cookie-cutter of the genre but why should it not be? Sometimes it is good to have something that simply does what it intends and does it well.
The vocals are really well done. There is a dark growl that is used to great effect that almost sounds like when a creature in an old horror movie has too much blood in his mouth and snarls at the camera. It is a really creepy vocal style that was legitimately disconcerting. The emotion is captured really well and is held onto by the band through the rest of the album. The backup vocals also mirror the same effect with a darker growl giving the vocal a nice three-dimensional feeling.
Musically things are also well done, capturing that same dark emotion and holding on to it. I was particularly fond of the way they used the bass. It has a very aggressive, distorted tone that worked really well. The guitars on the other hand I felt could use a little more in the mid-range they did tend to get lost in the mix every once in a while. The actual arrangement was great but just not enough mid-range power to cut through at times.
As with all black metal, it is something that is hard to recommend if you are not already a fan of the genre. It is just too out there for many people and I don’t think this will be the album to change many minds. That being said, if you are someone that already likes the genre then this is one to check out. It might not be ground-breaking, but it fits in really well with a playlist of a collection and I don’t think you will be disappointed to have this in your mix.
- ‘Daemon’ is released on Friday (25 October). You can get your copy HERE.
- Mayhem play the Damnation Festival in Leeds on Saturday 2 November, the Academy in Dublin on Sunday 3 and the Electric Ballroom on Monday 4.
www.facebook.com/mayhemofficial
- All content © Über Rock. Not to be reproduced in part or in whole without the express written permission of Über Rock.