Dauntless are a Helsinki, Finland based band that find their beginnings as far back as 1991. Since that time, they have gone through a few member change ups, and have recorded no less than seven demos, passing shitty record deal after shitty record deal along the way. In 2006, the band finally scored with Firebox Records, and began to record their debut full length, Execute the Fact.

Death/thrash is the order of the day here, as Execute the Fact is fast, pummeling and relentless. While leaning towards the death metal end of the spectrum more than other bands of this ilk, such as Dew-Scented or Hatesphere, they also incorporate a good amount of heavy groove similar to that latter band mentioned – just take for example “Born Controlled” or “Body Open Wide” – they’re loaded with it. Blast beats are littered all through the album courtesy of Santeri Salmi, such as in album opener “Ruins”, where their presence is rather strong. When not blasting away, he keeps things intense with maniacal double bass and busy hand work. The guitar licks provided by Sami Helle and Riku Katainen are outstanding. Crunchy and devastating riffs dominate the album and the solos are of face melting quality. The vocals of Ari Nieminen are pretty typical, alternating between a more traditional death metal style, and more of a deep kind of scream, though he does show just a hint of a higher range – check out the short, ear piercing wail at the 1:06 mark of “Sickest Victory” – it would have been a nice touch to the album if that sort of thing was done a couple more times throughout the album.

Dauntless are not breaking any new ground with Execute the Fact, but they do what they do very well. There is a level of quality here that is unexpected from a debut album, but after sixteen years and seven demos, it’s safe to call Dauntless a group of seasoned veterans. The only real downfall is the lack of variety – it’s a non-stop bludgeoning from beginning to end, and can become a bit monotonous unless that’s the kind of thing your looking for. However, several of the songs have little tweaks and catches that can make them stand out just a bit, which helps in keeping things from bleeding together too much. Fans of Carnal Forge, Dew-Scented, Hatesphere and Darkane are well advised in checking this one out, as it’s sure to not disappoint.

[Visit the band's website]

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