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Daylight Dies - Dismantling Devotion

General Information

Original Author: The Uncreator

Artist: Daylight Dies

Album: Dismantling Devotion

Genre: Melodic Death/ Doom

Tracklist

01. A Life Less
02. Dead Air
03. A Dream Resigned
04. All We Had
05. Solitary Refinement
06. Strive To See
07. Lies That Bind
08. Dismantling Devotion

Sound

10 Daylight Dies have one of the most unique sounds ive ever heard. You may notice that a lot of my reviews are 9 or 10. I think some times people take this as me saying that this is one of the greatest albums ever, when all i really mean is that that particular album may have flaws, but they pale in comparison to the overall picture. Well, i will let you know now, when i say this is a 10, i cant stress it enough, a number essentially means nothing other than a representation of my opinion, but the sheer originality of this band and the....God i cant even think of word for it, this album is as good as any Opeth album ive heard, as any Maiden album ive heard, and trust me, very few band i will say this about.

Guitar

10 There guitarists are just phenomenal, There use of chords, melodies, solos and clean guitars and acoustics is just beyond anything ive heard. There riffs arent fast or anything, or super detuned guitars, Yet there sound is still so heavy, it physically weighs down on you, Its a new kind of heavy, Daylight Dies heavy is all i can say i guess. The solos arent blazingly fast, there isnt sweeps flying by at 300 BPM, yet they could put many shredders to shame with there playing. The solos are all about the phrasing, the atmosphere, and how its sticks out in the song, when there is a solo, the song becomes bigger, more dramatic, and you feel the world they have created come to life in your mind, its not only one of the most beautiful displays of musician ship ive heard, but one of the most vivid. You feel the desperation, the melancholy, the worry, all with a few notes!

Bass

9 The bass moves so well with the songs, it might as well be a song itself. I think they use a bit of distortion with it, cause the tone is very alive in a distorted kinda way (make sense?). Either way, like i said, it moves magically in the songs, sometimes its but a whisper in your ear, but you know its there, always, you feel it in your chest, and in your your very soul! This isn't a feat of technicality here, much like the guitars, its not about being the fastest or anything, Its about what it produces as an overall effect. It reminds me much of Opeth's bassist, Martin Lopez. A thick and "Iron" tone that adds about 60% of the heavy to the song, A worthy addition for sure!

Drums

9 Yet again, no super fast double bass, or insane drum fills, And still it puts so many drummers to shame. The drums are like a perfectly fitting piece in the puzzle of Daylight Dies, It adds a lot to this band, Especially on the slower melodic parts, where there is but a single cymbal or two whispering in the background, these subtle additions i feel are the essence of musical art, even when an instrument isnt the focus of the song, it still adds to it, in ways you may or may not notice.

Vocals/ Nathan Ellis

10 Without a doubt, one of the sickest, most intense, most dramatic, and most epic growls ever! Growls that i believe could stand up to sir Mikael Akerfeldt himself! Ellis' voice is so 'over the top', or dramatic, in a good way of course. His voice is like a static knife slicing at your ears creating a beautiful flow of music, instead of blood All i can say is that this man has amazed me for the past 2 years, i dont know how he does it, But judge for yourself on this one, there is a video link at the bottom, and i think you will know what i mean

Vocals/ Egan O'Rourke

10 Also the bassist, Egan adds his clean voice as well, and i love it when he does, it may not be so often, but when he sings, you listen, without question. His voice is like a narrator telling a sad story, its melancholic tone makes you feel the sadness in this mans heart, its a beautiful expression. Once again, i want you to judge for yourself, check the link out at the bottom

Lyrics

10 Short maybe, but this doesnt stop them from being incredibly vivid, dark, beautiful, and you connect with them. If the song has a troubled tone, maybe desperation, you feel it, Nathans sings every word with a flawless execution.

From "A Life Less Lived" White stained red
Of vacant eyes
The hallow dreams
Of a barren life
Saline solutions
Yield no resolutions

Sleepwalk through
This pain induced
Coma of wakefulness
My lungs draw air
But in this body
There is no life

Pale washed red
Of crimson dreams
A lifeless glare
At a loveless world
Sanguine solutions
To hope's dissolution

Tomorrow's turmoil tonight
Carbon mirrors of my yesterdays

Sleepwalk through
This life induced
Coma of wakefulness
My lungs drew air
Now in this body
There is no pain

From "Dead Air" Indifference
The stale sound of apathy
Twelve months
And we thin to nothing

We choke
On bitter words
We would never say
This span of autumns
Brought no change

Apparitions
Hollow voice
Ghost of us
Twelve months and
How frail this autumn leaves

I choke
On bitter words
I would never say
This span of autumns
Never changed

From "A Dream Resigned" Around my waist
Are the stones I have tied
The weight
Of choices made
Diverting thoughts
Of a dream resigned

I repress
I evade
Total disregard
You bear the burden
And I will carry on

Throes of regret
That course through my mind
The Pain
Of careless ways
Divulging thoughts
Of a dream resigned

I repress
I evade
Total disregard
You bear the burden
And I will carry on

The price we pay for
The things that haunt us

From "Strive To See" This deadlocked
Our failure
Draped in vows
A dead letter
An altar stripped
To the ground

To all things
We could not overcome
And all we lost
For all the faith that
We will cast aside
And all we lost along the way

Dead silence
That echoes
In our stare
Dead ending
Abandoned lives
In disrepair

To all things
We could not overcome
And all we lost
For all the faith that
We will cast aside
And all we lost along the way

Dissolving
In slow motion
This deathbed
Of devotion

Overall Impression

Flawless It truly is, i could find no flaw, not even a slight "Oh i wish there was one more solo" or anything. I rate albums i really love, but dont consider perfect, a 10. I cant do this with this one, i must say with all my heart i truly love this album, what it does for me, what it will do for me, and what it has done for me, This albums is 100% without flaw. I recommend this to fans of Opeth, or just beautiful, dark, progressive, melodic, and heavy music. A Must buy.

Daylight Dies - Lies That Bind