Label: Non Serviam Records
Date: September 8th, 2023
And now, even if I probably shouldn’t do such things on the beginning of review, but I actually I don’t give a shit about this (!), I tell you only what. I was right when I wrote in very last sentence of “The Church of Destruction” review, I’ll don’t be disappointed with stuff which’s next in line. “Fatum” is ninth full-length of coming from city I felt always some kind of connection with – Vigo. And now I could write something about the city itself, but I’ll don’t do it at all. So, if you’re interested in that, you have to dig a little and search for some information by yourselves. But before I focus on “Fatum”, I guess I should tell you a little more about ensemble. Well, I do it as short as possible. The band was created in 2004 and there’re still two of four members in line-up. Both drummer Naemoth and guitarist Netzja met each other in atmospheric black metal (I found also some description like Atmospheric Post-Black, but personally I don’t agree with that) creature called LowMist they found four years before. But contrary to Dantalion it’s not too active duet – they released only one album in space of all these years.
Anyways, Dantalion plays quite different music than LowMist. I mean, you can find some, let’s call it, atmospheric touches here, but in general that’s quite raw and somehow even primitive what. It absolutely doesn’t mean guys present to us some two, up to three riffs creativity with even more monotonous drums or something! That’s even the contrary. Of course, it can’t be because of metal’s sub-genre character we have here to do with, as developed as in case of reviewed before Endemic, but it’s technically enough advanced to make music very interesting, even for the fussiest fans. Yeah! The truth is you must like black metal to be able to do it. But I somehow can’t imagine there’re some metalheads over there who have aversion for even good quality creativity like that. Maybe this is some kind of wishful thinking on my part (you know, humans generally have tendence to think like “if I think like that, then the most of others do the same thing”), but what to do. There’s everything what pure black metal is about in my opinion. While listening you can almost touch this evilness and sadness, even emptiness. And this is not only about quite typic for BM topics of lyric side. Music also participates in this work as well.
When we’re talking about this, just like I said before, guys represent huge quality of technical skills. Riffs are of course quite typical for black metal. But at the same time, they change as often as rules of the genre approve of it. Drumming and bass work are also as sophisticated as possible, with huge cymbals using, what makes music richer and, probably that’s why, I like it very much. We need to add desperate and show darkness and sadness sitting in the soul vocal. And it isn’t as easy as pie to arouse such feelings in the listener with help of, on the one hand, quite aggressive music, in my opinion. You know, Dantalion doesn’t play some funeral sound and so on. Tempo here is middle-fast one the most often, what of course doesn’t mean there’s no slower parts in creativity of Galicia’s the populous municipality inhabitants.
However, even me, who was always a little more death and thrash then black, can hear what bands inspire guys the most. Yeah! This is mostly about Norwegian school of playing this genre here. But at the same time, I recognize some German touches, too. Of course, what’s for me as clear as a day (or maybe I should, due to the fact I write about black metal, write: as dark as a moonless night) guys add their own touch, something what does you feel the horde comes from just Iberian Peninsula. Stuff is released by Dutch Non Serviam Records both as CD, vinyl and in digital form, so you’ll get exactly what you like for your money. I mean here the format you like the most, because I already wrote music is worth these few (in case of vinyl it’s over a dozen) bucks! The fact is the premiere took place quite long time ago, September 8th, last year, but as I know everything’s still available.
