What is ‘unlight’ you might wonder. I have no idea. But it is probably very evil and very metal. Swedish Demonical’s debut CD certainly is hard, heavy and very metal. Rest assured of that.
According to the band’s website, their mission is to return to the roots of death metal. They have indeed done so. ‘Servants of the Unlight’ is brutal, for the most part fast (however with a few breaks to give us air to breathe) and is adorned with the infamous Gothenburg sound.
Although Demonical have only been around for a year, it is easy to hear why things have been happening fast for them; they sound professional and tight. There’s no fucking around, just full throttle all the way.
Inspiration comes mainly from their Swedish peers (many parts sound like something that can be found on the first two Entombed releases - Slaughter Of All Hope has an interlude that sounds a lot like a part from Entombed’s ‘Left Hand Part’) and to a minor extent US death metal of the nineties.
As a curiosity, Demonical have included a cover version of Onslaught’s classic Death Metal. Demonical have in truth made it their own – it sounds exactly like the rest of ‘Servants of the Unlight’.
On the whole, a solid release from the Swedes – I’m looking forward to seeing/hearing this live if chance gets Demonical anywhere near me.
Recommended: United in Torture (has an ultra-cool intro that is reminiscent of Morbid Angel) and Leipzig 1945 (a mid-tempo groover that stands out entirely from the rest of the album – in a good way).
