While a fine label, Napalm Records isn’t exactly a death metal powerhouse, but with the recent release of Be’lakor‘s Vessels and now this, the third album from Germany’s Dawn of Disease, they appear to be getting into the flow. And while not into brutal, guttural death metal just yet, they have an ear for the more melodic side of the genre, which is what Worship the Grave is.
Dawn of Disease is a new act to me, but if I were to describe them, it would be a melodic death metal stew. Not the wispy, light Gothenburg fare but a beefier, heartier stew with chunks of Amon Amarth, a few sprigs of Hypocrisy and some Illdisposed thrown in for seasoning. The Woodshed production has a thick, chunky tone that along with some gruffer, deeper vocals, give the melodic hues and plentiful solos a little more weight and the end result is a damn fine album.
There are a few more familiar, noodly Gothenburg canters and gallops on a couple of tracks such as “Ashes” and “Outsourcing the Brain”, but for the most part, the pace and tone are a little more burly as tracks like the more blasting opening title track, “The Savior’s Tomb”, “On Trails of Death”, “Through Nameless Ages” and more Stockholm paced “Enwrapped in Guts”. There is a little restraint such as the stern Amon Amarth march of “Cult of the Fading Light” or the more introspective interlude “Prayer for the Dawn” and 6 and a half minute closer “The Sky is Empty”.
Each track is solid and enjoyable though not world beating. But it is a take on melodic death metal that has some balls through a variety of solid influences that should provide some comfort for those looking for a new but familiar sounding band delivering safe but burly melodic death metal.
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At first glance, I thought this was a new Dawn of Demise album…this though is pretty good stuff, definitely solid.
on Jul 29th, 2016 at 07:37New Dawn of Demise appears to be a Black Tongue downtempo affair.
on Jul 29th, 2016 at 10:28huh, not bad! The guitar tone sounds like early Dead To Fall, of all things.
on Jul 29th, 2016 at 11:55I’m not usually one for Melodic Death Metal but this is pretty solid.
on Jul 29th, 2016 at 12:43Not that anyone cares what I think, but I should really re-word that last statement I made. It sounded as if I didn’t like MDM at all, but I DO, just in small portions. I do throw on Heartwork, Slaughter of the Soul, 11 Dreams or Darkane’s Expanding Senses (so underrated) from time to time.
on Jul 29th, 2016 at 12:56@Taxidermy — Dead To Fall was exactly my thought (in a good way). This gave me flashbacks of driving through snowstorms in northern New England listening to the “Villainy & Virtue” album lol.
on Jul 30th, 2016 at 22:10no shit, I’m not alone in that? right on.
on Aug 5th, 2016 at 15:23