Album : The Return To Darkness
Origin : Mumbai, India
Release : 2010
Genre : Progressive Death/Black Metal
Label : Candlelight Records
To begin with a review for an album from a band all musically inclined people have expected nothing from and have been left with no broken hearts, for they got what they wanted, a demonically packaged, exclusively autographed copy of musical nothing, man I must have a lot of time on my hands. Quite the contrary, I don’t. And so, I take my entertainment seriously.
While most tracks are longish, given the average six minute play time, one could imagine them a lot shorter after the repetitive, regurgitated riff raff of riffs have been taken off, but then the album would lose all pretense to “kvlt” aesthetic paradigms of lengthy song structures. Clean vocals are a brilliant touch in many a metal band’s distorted riff salads, not this one. The vocals alternate between an amatory transvestite’s recitals of pop melodies and throaty, demonically processed growls. The synthesizer driven juvenilia is reminiscent of local Ganeshoutsav pandal “casio” players, while guitar driven songs generally tide over this favorite faux pas of the 80’s rock scene with competent riffage the same can hardly be said about the songs here. Mostly chromatic chugging and blasé power chord mongering make it a poor contender for the long time death metal listener’s short attention span which may be appealed to by a refined sensibility, originality of composition and technical proficiency in guitar playing which is largely absent. The only redeeming grace being some of the short bursts of relief brought about by inspired playing from Daniel (lead guitarist), the sad part is, those moments are few and far between. Occasionally, one must let even him return to his favorite blues box banalities which all, period, all guitarists have been partial to ever since the dawn of guitar playing. That is forgivable, granted that good solos stem primarily from good musical contexts, and here there aren't any. He’s done what could be done but given the production’s predictable thrust he had to return to darkness.
The production value is great, if not excellent. Many in the Indian metal fraternity have reckoned with the musical genius (?) of Demonic Resurrection, I would agree if I hadn’t learnt long ago, when I was 10, that *argumentum ad populum is a logical fallacy.
Giving the album a fair trial, I will begin with a tolerable song “A tragedy Befallen”. The leading motif is a great hook, not when abused relentlessly by surging vengeance against good taste like it is here. The throaty vocals and sibilant whispering are reasons enough to lose all patience, but on listening further and finding an imbecilic bridge that features some banal key changes which are actually building up into a generic break down with the same banal key changes one is at his wits end. The solo is a saver on this one though; Daniel manages to extricate the tune from a demonic abyss of unoriginality with a well crafted flurry of notes in ethereal prosody. The keyboard could have had a solo too, but hooks are all they seem to be going for while counting on a sweep sequence on the guitar to sweep the listener of his feet before settling on an age old minor arpeggiated acoustic outro, very original (?).
“The Unrelenting Surge of Vengeance!!!!”, I hear a groupie heckling. Ok, for some perspective a visit to the youtube video may be enlightening, not to hear the monstrosity parading as music and watch that bad joke of a video but to read sane people have a say. For the lazy and blind adherents of “kvlt metchul culture”, I take the liberty and honor to produce some heartfelt reactions to the song, Song (?).
Comments found on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1gjrpMF5ak&NR=1
The Unrelenting Surge Of Vengeance is what I call my morning constitutional.
phstelevision 2 weeks ago
Pack of curry shit stains. ( The racist undercurrent is not shared by the author of the review)
rutager4152 2 weeks ago
THIS IS NOT PROGRESSIVE BLACKEN DEATH!!!! This is Dimmu Borgir all over again. please get your genre correct. its Symphonic black metal
kalmah6666 3 weeks ago
And someone told me there is a “The Unrelenting Surge Of Vengeance” cover contest going on. And the author, who is what one may call a competent guitarist, along with a lot of sensible, educated and able musicians said “Shove it!” and that was that. Was the cover contest some kind of practical joke? Judging by the entries they received, one guesses not. Many a musician has laughed at the prospect of covering a song which has squat challenging parts; others have been mollycoddled with unrelenting praise for listening to and covering a truly forgettable song. Congratulations guys, you are all rockstars. All said and done, the video on mute is the best stand up comic act I’ve ever seen. To say it ala Daniel Rego: EPIC WIN.
“Omega, I” revels in the all too familiar tasteless riff repetition salad, courtesy the other wise delectable cook Demon Stealer. Never mind that he couldn’t steal a better moniker for himself from the infinite nomenclatural conventions made possible by human (and not in the least demonic) literary annals. No solo to save this one and it’s so low down the aesthetic ladder’s ardurous rungs that it shan’t agree with any. The symphonic outro is symply phoney symphonic metal emulation; I extend my sympathy towards sympathizers and apathy towards the proliferators of such dastardly ditties. There’s a video DEMONstration of this song by the lead guitarist. Really, you must think us inept little bitches who can’t find their asshole in the dark, while foraging for it with both hands if you think we couldn’t figure that out by ourselves. That we wouldn’t bother to cover it given the low appeal of the tacky and long song is another matter.
“Bound by Blood, Fire and Stone” makes me want the gallop riff mongering andhighly original (?) Demon Stealer to be bound to a heavy stone and thrown into the sea. Third degree burns and death by stoning would come a close second for the disservice this song does to musical sensibilities. Yes, we understand your drummer can play some fast grooves on a gallop riff and throw in some blast beats on a chug heavy riff, get over it, all good death metal drummers can that and much more. What’s with the inane pedal tone second guitar back up, on this song on others? Don’t harp on it, many bands have done it before to better, much better results. Vocals sound like they’re coming out of a defunct vacuum cleaner. And, making new riffs for different sections maybe more hard work than a demonically overrated band which gets away recycling the generic, synth-laden riffs would want to put in.
“The Final Stand” starts out promisingly with a rare and seemingly thought out synt- intro and a pummeling drum line but is quick to disappoint with the heady whine-growl of the seemingly asthmatic Demon Stealer disfiguring an overly saccharine addled guitar riff, the repetitious agony of which again relentlessly surges toward the nauseating. The half time bridge around 3.30mins of the song, with the bad pop vocals and selfsame into motif being milked, with squealing joy and pinch harmonics leads into a disappointing lead guitar wank in the diatonic realms. If one believed melodrama finds no place in metal music, listen to this song. Clean vocals help; when the sung by good singers. Go get one, now!!!
“The Lord of Pestilence” while I would generally not listen to some song with such an original name, once in a while popular opinion makers drag me by the heels to the last pile of puke everyone’s been getting a lick off. I won’t make claims attenuating the band’s expertise in sounding like Metallica, (before they became a forgettable band), they’ve done a good job at that, sans the Texan drawl and panache of course. The song seems aimed at the plebian metal heads, who form a large section of Demonic Resurrection’s fan base. Drum lines here are decent (read: good, like a zillion other metal band’s) and help the guitar not seem to be sucking seven cocks simultaneously. The change in keyboard tone at 3.35 is a solitary and necessary respite from the general repertoire of a Downs syndrome affected keyboardist’s tonal monomania. He needs to be gifted a tone bank or some such thing, really. The solo here is better than some other pentatonic exercises that all guitarists are nostalgic about when they evolve. The key section at 8.00 minutes is rendered irrelevant and excessive when followed by a guitar which menaces more successfully with the same melody. It’s an eerie motif again made impotent through overuse, sometime repetition takes emphasis away you know. The end section is interesting, so let’s end it here and not talk about that silly drum pounding that emerges when you thought the song was through and goes on for another four long, repetitious, torturous, demonically damned minutes.
“Where Dreams and Day Unite” blasts its way into a blasé path often trodden by the average metal band; a rudimentary melody lane with break downs and the whole caboodle of synthetic sounding vocals and plastic keyboard tones. The major scale riff at 2.39 minutes raises hopes with an energetic structure, building into a boyzonesque vocal line to curb any enthusiasm one may have developed by its deceptive and short-lived allure and finally lapses into torturous repetition. The end section is fairly decent, partly because with it the author can sleep with a clean conscience not bothering to bother listening to the rest of the assured humdrum on the album to save it from his rightful critical disapproval.
The album is strictly “allright” and no more. If there is appreciation pouring in from abroad one is tempted to believe it’s a manifestation of the white man’s burden, or that the most metal enthusiasts have tin ears in general. This album is a Demonic Hoax; don’t fall for the slick packaging and greasy burgers being thrown in free with this Demonic turd sandwich. Keep it metal \m/
The above review was written by Cain Pinto and i enjoyed every bit of what he wrote here. i dont need to add to the controversy but everyone is entitled to his/hers opinion and what Cain wrote here was simply his take on the album and not everyone completely agrees with what he has to say. cheers MetalFarmer
