Dutch act Dystopia will celebrate its twentieth anniversary next year; okay, there used to be a hiatus somewhere during their first years, yet this band recorded their first demonstrational material during the start of the second half of this century’s first decay, eh, I mean decade (got it?). Initially, this outfit was created as a rather Thrash-oriented alternative for Pulverised. After that (short) break, the band started performing a more technical and blackened styled form of Death Metal, and throughout the years, things did evolve towards an explicit and complex form of Black Metal.
The band has always been like an ‘outsider’ act, for their material did add that certain touch of surreal and out-of-the-box-thinking finesse. The (somewhat recently introduced) use of ‘Brass’ elements is such example, besides the progressive techniques that define their style as from the earlier years. With this newest album, things get lifted up once again to another level of craftsmanship. I will come back to this immediately.
This new record has become a four-tracker that lasts for more than thirty-seven minutes; the band has always created quite lengthy tracks, and that’s exactly the case with this fourth full-length too. De Verboden Diepte I: Veldslag Op De Rand Van De Wereld (‘the forbidden depth I: battle on the edge of the world’) got recorded and mixed at the E-Sound Studio’s by original members Dennis Onsia (lead vocals [in Dutch!] and guitars) and drummer Cees De Wit, and Rick Jongman (guitars and backing vocals) and Thomas Cochrane (guitars and backing vocals, trumpet and trombone, recording and mixing). The arrival of the latter, Thomas, did have a huge influence on this band’s current sound, by the way.
As from opener Dood Van De Wachters (‘dead of the guards’), the band represents a fierce force of blackened fury, driven by speed-up drum-patterns, raw yet melodic guitar harmonies, and a merciless throat. Yet after one minute and something, Dystopia show their typifying approach for the first time, by an intermezzo with Amenicana-like percussions and a somewhat ‘exotic’ brass play (trombone or trumpet). Yet soon the quartet rages forth with a mostly merciless assault, based on traditional yet intense Black Metal, with more brass-based excerpts, a few decelerated passages, hints of crusty Punk oriented groove, and the use of some harsher shout-like vocals. The better part is, as mentioned, build around a timeless Black Metal structure, with multiple string-lines, including methodical solo-work, some acoustic injections yet, above all, overwhelming chords. There is a huge variety, both vocally and instrumentally, as well as when it comes to the speed: mainly up-tempo up to fast-paced, with some frenzy eruptions (listen to the final sequence, for example) as well as a couple of put-back moments. Giftige Woorden (‘poisonous words’) then again is a brain-squeezing and ball-crushing sonic attack, wherein the drum-parts apply as devastating and molesting. Nice are the grandiose tremolo leads, yet notice the choir-singing, that semi-acoustic avantgarde interlude (jazzy and proggy), the vocal timbre (not exactly a blackish throat, yet rather offering a Crust-laden acid-puking timbre, joined by unclean chants), that epic and victorious doomed passage, and the generally atmospheric mood. Clocking over ten minutes, the third piece, called Eerst Enkelen, Toen Honderden, Toen Duizenden (‘first a few, then hundreds, then thousands’) delves in spheres of deadly Sludge Metal supremacy. The high-melodious riffage (so many layers and levels of string-execution) has an hypnotic effect, before flowing over into a shorter acoustic passage with spoken words, jazzy drums and Post Rock laden strings for a while. These fragments will reappear again, by the way; some injected once again by trumpet / trombone (at half of this aural epos, I cannot but think about Angelo Badalamenti). The bruteness of this track (and then I am referring to the harsher moments, not the acoustic chapters) is characterized by the power of sludgy dronework – remarkable how the guitars combine significant profundity with spherical finesse – and eccentric, outsider-oriented drums and percussions. De Val (‘the fall’), finally, which is the ‘shortest’ one with its duration of ‘only’ 08:37 minutes, focuses once more on the old school of Black Metal, smartly and humbly injected with hints of Doom-Death (cf. the bass lines), Post-Black (some of the six-string riffs come with that smooth sound of Post-like fairness) and Heathen / Pagan Black Metal. The use of thick layers of brass instrumentation creates an overwhelming, orchestral bombast, reminiscent of some more theatrical (Blackened Death Metal) bands, but not once it gives the feeling of being exaggerated or exorbitant (yet still maintaining a passionate extravagance for sure). Another undeniable fine aspect is the ‘emotion’ within, and behind, De Val, especially towards the end yet also during the several slower sections.
After several listens, De Verboden Diepte I: Veldslag Op De Rand Van De Wereld remains a harsh, unusual, laborious work, for every couple of minutes, even seconds, it shifts and exchanges. The unique and inventive, yet quite arduous variation, with the manifold use of trumpets, the (semi) acoustic segments, the many tempo- and texture-alterations, the use of elements from other genres (different approaches of old-schooled and modernistic Black Metal, as well as details from Progressive, Doom, Punk, Sludge, Post-Rock, etc.), and the different vocal types, is not easy to digest. But then again, every single aspect, each single fragment fits perfectly into the whole, majestic, overwhelming adventure; because an ‘adventure’ it is for sure.
Anyway, this latest Dystopia album is the first out of two for Flanders finest Immortal Frost Productions, since both parties did sign a two-album contract (hurray!). It was released on compact disc, with inclusion of a sixteen-page booklet, and pressed on two different types of vinyl, which are coming with a lyrics sheet and an A2-sized poster. Zvaertgevegt from the Netherlands took care of a limited cassette-batch, by the way. The album, carefully mastered by Brad Boatright at the Audiosiege offices, comes with extremely nice visual artistry by Ars Veneficium’s Ronarg, with layout and design taken care by WrathDesign (both collaborators, Ronarg and WrathDesign, are closely related to Immortal Frost Productions, as you do know of course). The cover artwork surely fits to the aural artistry, being at least as eclectic and chaotically well-structured, for what it’s worth.
https://www.zwaertgevegt.nl/product/dystopia-de-verboden-diepte-i-veldslag-op-de-rand-van-de-wereld/