Post by Deleted on Aug 5, 2016 11:08:08 GMT -6
Dying Blaze - Attera Obscurum
Year: 2011
Genre: Black Metal
Dying Blaze is one of those fantastic projects that seems to be unfortunately buried in the vast depths of underground metal, to be discovered only by few. This EP released by Nokternal Hemizphear seems to be the band's only release that got widespread distribution in America, and that certainly is a shame, as I would love to hear more from this stellar act. Attera Obscurum is powerful, fierce, and fast. The EP is produced extremely well, which helps enhance its ferocity. I normally don't like it when black metal is this crisp and clear, but I think it works well here. The way the guitars are produced causes the tremolo riffs to sound as if they're crashing upon the listener like waves, which is a really neat effect. The drums sound very consistent almost as if he's using an electric kit, but they don't sound programmed, which is really nice. This consistency gives an almost mechanical feeling to the music, which, once again, is not something that I would usually like in black metal, but it seems to work well here, as atmosphere is not the primary focus of the EP. That's not to say that there's not atmosphere at all, in fact, there's a good amount, but I'll get to that later. It's just that the more memorable aspect of this EP is its relentlessness and power.
The riffs are fantastic, and quite memorable in most places. They're mostly tremolo; however, there are some more death metal-influenced riffs every once in a while, especially in transitions between phrases. Occasionally, the riffs get a little too simple, but thankfully that doesn't last for very long. The EP doesn't fall into the trap of repeating the same riff for an entire song like some other CBM acts do, and I really appreciate that. The drumming behind the riffs is what creates most of the power. Tremolo riffs aren't powerful on their own; they need some good blastbeating to back them up, and the drum composition in Attera Obscurum is more than enough to suffice. As I mentioned before, the drumming sounds very electronic and mechanical (but not poorly programmed, and probably not programmed at all), and I think I've figured out why I like it here. The fast nature of these songs can create the feeling of being chased by something, and the mechanical nature of the drums sounds somewhat inhuman, and that adds to that feeling. The vocals aren't amazing, but they are good, and they work well for this style. They're not anything super special though.
Attera Obscurum would be almost complete with its drums, guitars, and vocals, but it would still feel as if something is missing. Despite its intense pace, I do think that it still needs some atmosphere in order for it to really shine. And thankfully, it has quite a lot. The ambient intro "Caducus" sets the mood for the EP by making it sound as if you're looking down into hell and listening. The title track has an ambient intro that includes the roaring of a creature (probably meant to be Satan) and gunfire, to create a war-against-Satan-style mood. Other songs feature various synths and some clean guitar sections. "Darkness is Coming" has some piano mixed into the onslaught of black metal. All of this serves to give the listener a break from the pandemonium and establish a base upon which to build the music. It's the backbone of the powerful nature of the EP.
This is an amazing piece of well-produced and well-played black metal that I recommend to anyone who likes extreme metal.
93/100
-CrimsonWarrior
Buy it from SkyBurnsBlack:
skyburnsblack.storenvy.com/products/6576451-dying-blaze-attera-obscurum
Buy/stream on Bandcamp:
nokternalhemizphear.bandcamp.com/album/attera-obscurum
Year: 2011
Genre: Black Metal
Dying Blaze is one of those fantastic projects that seems to be unfortunately buried in the vast depths of underground metal, to be discovered only by few. This EP released by Nokternal Hemizphear seems to be the band's only release that got widespread distribution in America, and that certainly is a shame, as I would love to hear more from this stellar act. Attera Obscurum is powerful, fierce, and fast. The EP is produced extremely well, which helps enhance its ferocity. I normally don't like it when black metal is this crisp and clear, but I think it works well here. The way the guitars are produced causes the tremolo riffs to sound as if they're crashing upon the listener like waves, which is a really neat effect. The drums sound very consistent almost as if he's using an electric kit, but they don't sound programmed, which is really nice. This consistency gives an almost mechanical feeling to the music, which, once again, is not something that I would usually like in black metal, but it seems to work well here, as atmosphere is not the primary focus of the EP. That's not to say that there's not atmosphere at all, in fact, there's a good amount, but I'll get to that later. It's just that the more memorable aspect of this EP is its relentlessness and power.
The riffs are fantastic, and quite memorable in most places. They're mostly tremolo; however, there are some more death metal-influenced riffs every once in a while, especially in transitions between phrases. Occasionally, the riffs get a little too simple, but thankfully that doesn't last for very long. The EP doesn't fall into the trap of repeating the same riff for an entire song like some other CBM acts do, and I really appreciate that. The drumming behind the riffs is what creates most of the power. Tremolo riffs aren't powerful on their own; they need some good blastbeating to back them up, and the drum composition in Attera Obscurum is more than enough to suffice. As I mentioned before, the drumming sounds very electronic and mechanical (but not poorly programmed, and probably not programmed at all), and I think I've figured out why I like it here. The fast nature of these songs can create the feeling of being chased by something, and the mechanical nature of the drums sounds somewhat inhuman, and that adds to that feeling. The vocals aren't amazing, but they are good, and they work well for this style. They're not anything super special though.
Attera Obscurum would be almost complete with its drums, guitars, and vocals, but it would still feel as if something is missing. Despite its intense pace, I do think that it still needs some atmosphere in order for it to really shine. And thankfully, it has quite a lot. The ambient intro "Caducus" sets the mood for the EP by making it sound as if you're looking down into hell and listening. The title track has an ambient intro that includes the roaring of a creature (probably meant to be Satan) and gunfire, to create a war-against-Satan-style mood. Other songs feature various synths and some clean guitar sections. "Darkness is Coming" has some piano mixed into the onslaught of black metal. All of this serves to give the listener a break from the pandemonium and establish a base upon which to build the music. It's the backbone of the powerful nature of the EP.
This is an amazing piece of well-produced and well-played black metal that I recommend to anyone who likes extreme metal.
93/100
-CrimsonWarrior
Buy it from SkyBurnsBlack:
skyburnsblack.storenvy.com/products/6576451-dying-blaze-attera-obscurum
Buy/stream on Bandcamp:
nokternalhemizphear.bandcamp.com/album/attera-obscurum