Here’s a reunion I didn’t see coming or know anything about until the promo showed up in my inbox.
For a while there, in the mid 00s, Sweden’s The Duskfall (formed by Gates of Ishtar’s Mikael Sandorf, after they broke up) were considered one of the heirs apparent to In Flames as they entered their sucky commercial phase with albums like Reroute to Remain, A Soundtrack to Your Escape, Come Clarity, and A Sense of Purpose.
The Duskfall‘s first 2 albums, Frailty and Source (which I reviewed for digitalmetal.com back in the day), as well as their third album, Lifetime Supply of Guilt, filled the void nicely and brought some energy and respect (and even some long-missing heaviness) back to the genre of Swedish melodic death metal, even if it was still clichéd and predictable. Heck, they even had a song, “Shoot It In”, featured on the 2007 hit video game, The Darkness.
The band split up in 2008 (a few Gates of Ishtar and The Duskfall members went on to form the death ‘n’ roll act Helltrain) after releasing The Dying Wonders of the World, but briefly reformed in 2014 to release Where the Tree Stands Dead, and then went on an extended hiatus after.
So 12 years later, the band is back (again), with their 6th album, and with a line-up that’s largely new since 2014 and the original days, with Sandorf being the lone truly original member. As well as guitars, he takes over vocals, with a gruff growl, a welcome change from Magnus Klavborn, who performed on Where the Tree Stands Dead and I never really liked, as he used pretty bad clean vocals and a sneering, higher-register rasp after replacing longtime vocalist Kai Jaakkola (the album did have some killer riffs though). But he has assembled a cast of players and veterans (largely from prog rock act Psykonaut) who are able to lock into a classic NWSDM like it was 2002- 2007 all over again.
While certainly falling into all the pitfalls of the Swedish melodic death metal formula, as he did on his earlier albums, Sandorf has still locked into a tried-and-true sound that is familiar and energetic, just like the first few The Duskfall albums, and it’s just as enjoyable and formulaic as it was back then.
A big, modern production (from drummer Sebastian Lindgren) and strong songwriting that unashamedly pulls from all the 90s/00s Gothenburg influences make the album an enjoyable throwback. Whether it’s faster, more galloping, hook-filled tracks like the opener “Entomb My Shadows”, “The Everlasting Shadows”, “Nights at the Graves” and snarling “Peacemaker”, or stern but melodic, catchy stompers like “As Our Days Are Dying”, “World of Lies”, chunky “Golem” and my personal favorites, “Legion” and “Kneedeep in the Grave”. It’s all really well done, incredibly catchy (but still hefty), and shows Sandorf’s and co.’s experience in the genre and commitment to that sound 20 years later.
A damn solid effort and comeback; let’s hope Sandorf’s other recently announced comeback in Gates of Isthtar next year is as successful and enjoyable.
