Dies Irae - Naive
2001 - Oz Productions
By Philip Whitehouse
Available from Plastic Head Music Distribution Jan/Feb 2003 - Click Here
Okay, just to clear up any confusion before this review begins. Look a little bit further down the reviews section of this website, and you'll find a review of a CD called 'The Sin War' by my esteemed colleague Rodrigo. The band that recorded 'The Sin War' is called Dies Irae. But it's not this band. That Dies Irae are a death metal band from Poland featuring members of Vader, whilst this Dies Irae are a melodic death metal band with doom influences all the way from Mexico. And just to clear things up further, Dies Irae is a Latin phrase meaning 'Day Of Wrath'. So, that's that sorted then. On with the review.
This album was actually released in 2001, and is Dies Irae's second. With their UK distributors citing such influences as Kreator, Celtic Frost, King Crimson and My Dying Bride, and with appaerances from members of Night Rage and Exhumation on the album, coupled further with the knowledge that this record was recorded in Gotheborg, Sweden at Studio Fredman, then you probably have a fair idea what the album will sound like. For the most part, it's melo-death all the way, sounding not entirely unlike a version of Withering Surface who have remembered how to bludgeon like a brutal death metal band whilst retaining the blistering leads and hooky melodies.
However, Dies Irae liven things up (or should I say deaden things down?) with the aforementioned doom metal influences - songs give way to mid-tempo passages where the bass takes particular prominence and the tone is angry than melancholy. Special mention must go to the bassist, Carlos Orozeo here - his bass-work is genuinely impressive, reminiscent almost of the almighty Cliff Burton. By extension, too, I must praise Fredrik (In Flames) Nordstrem's production job for bringing out the best in every instrument in the mix whilst retaining a genuinely powerful, intense sound.
Songs like 'Parallel Universe Part 1' and 'Blurred' feature excellent solos, with 'Blurred' in particular sporting some jaw-dropping fretboard gymnastics and 'Parallel Universe Part 1' allowing the drummer to show off his dexterity. The songs are interesting throughout, with infectious melodies paired up with passages both consisting of furious velocity and more downcast, acoustic segments.
About the only criticism I have of this album is that the members seem to have unresolved prog-metal tendencies that occasionally get the better of them - there are two completely acoustic tracks and one which is split into three 'movements' - one regular, one instrumental and one acoustic - and these parts of the album really don't seem to hold the same level of power as the rest of the tracks. Also, the melodic death metal elements work far better than the occasional doom influences, showing that Dies Irae are at their best when going full-speed ahead. That's not to say the rest of the album is particularly bad, just that it's not as good as these moments, and inconsistency is an annoying tendency in itself.
Overall though, this is an interesting album with a fairly original approach, put together by obviously talented musicians and blessed with an exceptional production job. My question is whether the doom influences will put off the melo-death crowd, and vice versa.
8/10
2001 - Oz Productions
By Philip Whitehouse
Available from Plastic Head Music Distribution Jan/Feb 2003 - Click Here
Okay, just to clear up any confusion before this review begins. Look a little bit further down the reviews section of this website, and you'll find a review of a CD called 'The Sin War' by my esteemed colleague Rodrigo. The band that recorded 'The Sin War' is called Dies Irae. But it's not this band. That Dies Irae are a death metal band from Poland featuring members of Vader, whilst this Dies Irae are a melodic death metal band with doom influences all the way from Mexico. And just to clear things up further, Dies Irae is a Latin phrase meaning 'Day Of Wrath'. So, that's that sorted then. On with the review.
This album was actually released in 2001, and is Dies Irae's second. With their UK distributors citing such influences as Kreator, Celtic Frost, King Crimson and My Dying Bride, and with appaerances from members of Night Rage and Exhumation on the album, coupled further with the knowledge that this record was recorded in Gotheborg, Sweden at Studio Fredman, then you probably have a fair idea what the album will sound like. For the most part, it's melo-death all the way, sounding not entirely unlike a version of Withering Surface who have remembered how to bludgeon like a brutal death metal band whilst retaining the blistering leads and hooky melodies.
However, Dies Irae liven things up (or should I say deaden things down?) with the aforementioned doom metal influences - songs give way to mid-tempo passages where the bass takes particular prominence and the tone is angry than melancholy. Special mention must go to the bassist, Carlos Orozeo here - his bass-work is genuinely impressive, reminiscent almost of the almighty Cliff Burton. By extension, too, I must praise Fredrik (In Flames) Nordstrem's production job for bringing out the best in every instrument in the mix whilst retaining a genuinely powerful, intense sound.
Songs like 'Parallel Universe Part 1' and 'Blurred' feature excellent solos, with 'Blurred' in particular sporting some jaw-dropping fretboard gymnastics and 'Parallel Universe Part 1' allowing the drummer to show off his dexterity. The songs are interesting throughout, with infectious melodies paired up with passages both consisting of furious velocity and more downcast, acoustic segments.
About the only criticism I have of this album is that the members seem to have unresolved prog-metal tendencies that occasionally get the better of them - there are two completely acoustic tracks and one which is split into three 'movements' - one regular, one instrumental and one acoustic - and these parts of the album really don't seem to hold the same level of power as the rest of the tracks. Also, the melodic death metal elements work far better than the occasional doom influences, showing that Dies Irae are at their best when going full-speed ahead. That's not to say the rest of the album is particularly bad, just that it's not as good as these moments, and inconsistency is an annoying tendency in itself.
Overall though, this is an interesting album with a fairly original approach, put together by obviously talented musicians and blessed with an exceptional production job. My question is whether the doom influences will put off the melo-death crowd, and vice versa.
8/10
