Death metal powerhouse The Black Dahlia Murder are back with their 8th studio release ‘Nightbringers‘, which will be blessing fans ears from October 6th, and as a huge fan myself, I can say completely unbiased that this is one of their best releases to date, if not their best.
The band set the tone of the whole album instantly with the opening track ‘Widowmaker’ showing an explosion of powerful sound and killer vocals which had me gripped instantly. One of the reasons people love The Black Dahlia Murder is because of that impact alone, all their albums have a way of dragging you in and becoming enthralled in the albums dark worlds. Nightbringers is no exception. As each song takes hold, you can’t help but appreciate its pure perfection and immense sound.
Nightbringers is different to the bands previous releases in that the sound conveyed throughout almost depicts a story, but different to those in past albums. The engineering was done in a way that all parts were recorded separately and then sent to Denmark to be mastered. What they got back was 34 minutes of searing death metal. It was originally seen that Nocturnal (2007) would be their best album, however Nightbringers has evolved from that, refining their sound in all aspects. The songwriting seems to be tighter, and the vibe of the album flows more naturally than any of their previous albums.
The album is based around the bands beliefs, on how this style of music should be dark and anti religious, and that you yourself should be self dependent, to be the wolf and not the sheep. And the dark melodic sound reflects that, resulting in pure power and a relentless pace.
Every song has its own certain charm to it, from the albums self titled single ‘Nightbringers’, which you can’t help tap along to its fast pace, to ‘The Lonely Deceased’ which ends the album on a melodic note.
In my opinion, this album is a technical masterpiece, and a homage to their amazing 16 year career. The Black Dahlia Murder surely feel the same as they are eager to tour the USA and Europe to show off their amazing new work.
If you are looking to pick up arguably the best metal album of the year, you needn’t look any further. ‘Nightbringers’ is the essential beer swigging, head banging, metal explosion of this year.
Check out our interview with frontman Trevor Strnad here.
The Black Dahlia Murder online:
http://www.tbdmofficial.com
http://www.facebook.com/theblackdahliamurderofficial
http://twitter.com/bdmmetal
https://instagram.com/theblackdahliamurder_official
Words – Huw Northcott
