Post by Deleted on Feb 2, 2016 16:16:31 GMT -6
Départe - Demo MMXIV
Year: 2014
Genre: Post-Black Metal
Finding a place to start with this review seems difficult. There is so much going on in this demo for just eighteen minutes of music. Départe is a post-black metal band from Australia, but they sound unlike anything else I've ever heard. They combine elements of doom metal, drone, and ambient in their music to enhance the atmosphere and add originality and variety.
The production is on the rougher side, but much better than you'd expect for something labeled as a demo. In fact, I think the production is perfect for this kind of music. It has a raw enough edge to it to satisfy that feeling that you want from black metal, but the production is high enough that you can perfectly decipher every riff, which is extremely important, considering just how complicated this music is. It isn't uncommon for there to be three or more guitar parts going on at the same time, and it often goes above that, reaching absurd levels of complexity. If you listen closely, you might be able to hear something new almost every time you listen to this. The bass is occasionally given a chance to shine with a nice groove.
The songwriting is varied, often switching between fast, chaotic sections and slower, calmer, doomy sections. The songs occasionally go mid-paced as well. There will often be a main guitar riff playing, a rhythm guitar riff, and then a high, tremolo riff floating above it all during the slower sections. Some of the slowest sections contain guitars that are somewhat droning in the absence of the high tremolo riffs that are typical of post-black. The fastest sections often contain multiple tremolo riffs along with a rhythm riff. There are parts of the songs where there seem to be five or more guitar parts going on at the same time. Trying to put words to the complexity of this music is extremely difficult, so I recommend simply listening to it and you'll understand what I mean.
The variety created by the songwriting makes for a very interesting and intense listen. This demo is completely captivating from start to finish and it will take you on a little adventure. The music is packed with emotion and passion, as are the lyrics. Though Départe is technically not a Christian band, Sam Dishington, one of the band's members, is a Christian. The lyrics are obviously inspired by Christianity and are very positive and thoughtful.
The drumming is just about perfect. It has lots of complicated patterns and lots of variety to compliment the ever-changing structure of the songs. The vocals are top-notch too. The vocalist has a fantastic range, switching between typical, higher-pitched black metal shrieks, and low screaming that is more reminiscent of death metal. Towards the end of "I", clean vocals are introduced during a section with a lot of those high, floaty tremolo riffs and it creates an amazingly powerful feeling.
I cannot fully put into words how amazing Départe is, but I gave it a shot anyway. I cannot identify any immediate flaws with this demo. I eagerly await their full-length album.
98/100
-CrimsonWarrior
Buy/stream/download on Bandcamp:
departenoise.bandcamp.com/releases
Year: 2014
Genre: Post-Black Metal
Finding a place to start with this review seems difficult. There is so much going on in this demo for just eighteen minutes of music. Départe is a post-black metal band from Australia, but they sound unlike anything else I've ever heard. They combine elements of doom metal, drone, and ambient in their music to enhance the atmosphere and add originality and variety.
The production is on the rougher side, but much better than you'd expect for something labeled as a demo. In fact, I think the production is perfect for this kind of music. It has a raw enough edge to it to satisfy that feeling that you want from black metal, but the production is high enough that you can perfectly decipher every riff, which is extremely important, considering just how complicated this music is. It isn't uncommon for there to be three or more guitar parts going on at the same time, and it often goes above that, reaching absurd levels of complexity. If you listen closely, you might be able to hear something new almost every time you listen to this. The bass is occasionally given a chance to shine with a nice groove.
The songwriting is varied, often switching between fast, chaotic sections and slower, calmer, doomy sections. The songs occasionally go mid-paced as well. There will often be a main guitar riff playing, a rhythm guitar riff, and then a high, tremolo riff floating above it all during the slower sections. Some of the slowest sections contain guitars that are somewhat droning in the absence of the high tremolo riffs that are typical of post-black. The fastest sections often contain multiple tremolo riffs along with a rhythm riff. There are parts of the songs where there seem to be five or more guitar parts going on at the same time. Trying to put words to the complexity of this music is extremely difficult, so I recommend simply listening to it and you'll understand what I mean.
The variety created by the songwriting makes for a very interesting and intense listen. This demo is completely captivating from start to finish and it will take you on a little adventure. The music is packed with emotion and passion, as are the lyrics. Though Départe is technically not a Christian band, Sam Dishington, one of the band's members, is a Christian. The lyrics are obviously inspired by Christianity and are very positive and thoughtful.
The drumming is just about perfect. It has lots of complicated patterns and lots of variety to compliment the ever-changing structure of the songs. The vocals are top-notch too. The vocalist has a fantastic range, switching between typical, higher-pitched black metal shrieks, and low screaming that is more reminiscent of death metal. Towards the end of "I", clean vocals are introduced during a section with a lot of those high, floaty tremolo riffs and it creates an amazingly powerful feeling.
I cannot fully put into words how amazing Départe is, but I gave it a shot anyway. I cannot identify any immediate flaws with this demo. I eagerly await their full-length album.
98/100
-CrimsonWarrior
Buy/stream/download on Bandcamp:
departenoise.bandcamp.com/releases