Dagor Dagorath - Times Of Distress
The Israeli band Dagor Dagorath states on its myspace banners that it is a “black metal band from the holy land.” I think this is an amusing marketing ploy because in reality it matters not where the band is from as long as they play the music they want to play. Shock-metal is a thing of the past I believe. But the band also claims that it specifically formed a band to write songs in the “black metal style.” The quotes around those three words are not mine, they are theirs. They put the quotes around them but I can not see why they have to do that since I think the world would generally accept them according to their other self description, “symphonic black metal.” I think there is a little something artificial about the set up then, if the words are in quotes and the band was created specifically to be black metal style because it means they thought about the formation of that band quite a bit than other bands seem to have. Maybe that is a pro and a con. Time will tell.
Dagor has a new full length CD out soon, I hope, as I would love to hear it for sure. According to their page, the full-length is called YETZER HA’RA. The CD I am reviewing here is called TIMES OF DISTRESS. It opens with clean keyboard and rumblings. In fact, I might even say that it sounds a bit like Cradle of Filth. But then the band adds some acoustic pickings over that keyboard which automatically separates it from Cradle of Filth and takes it up several rungs in style and creativity in my opinion. The second track, “Fate of Slaves,” then blasts into keyboard laden black metal guitar parts and fast drums. The keyboards are unusually haunting in this context for some reason. I have heard keyboards in black metal bands for years but for some reason I think their addition sounds particularly scary here. Well Done Dagor Dagorath.
The third track slows down to something out of a neo-neo-folk band and then blasts back into full speed again with TOTAL WAR black metal vocals. There is a lot of black metal in this six track self released album and a wide emotional spectrum is trounced upon. I think Dagor Dagorath is just getting started and will be a band to which much attention is paid. I know I am paying attention.
The third track slows down to something out of a neo-neo-folk band and then blasts back into full speed again with TOTAL WAR black metal vocals. There is a lot of black metal in this six track self released album and a wide emotional spectrum is trounced upon. I think Dagor Dagorath is just getting started and will be a band to which much attention is paid. I know I am paying attention.