[ Previous | Index | Next ]

Hades

Dawn Of The Dying Son

(c)(p)1997 Fullmoon Productions

Review by Brett Benzie

Finally, the release of Hades second album! Hades first CD placed many reviewers in a strange predicament. The music was top notch, it was heavy, melodic, and in parts, exciting, but ultimately, it came across a tad one-dimensional, and boring. Since then, they've had their demo "Alone Walking" repressed onto CD, and gone into hiding.

And it seems they've used that time away from the studio to their credit, because "Dawn Of The Dying Sun" is a fucking corker. Their overall sound has changed little, but their songs have much more depth than their previous efforts.

Track Listing:

"The Dawn Of The Dying Sun"

A HUGE viking epic. The drums are frantic in spots, militarian in others. Quite short compared to the rest (about 2.5 mins)

"Awakening Of Kings"

Opens with a distorted bass intro. Very folky sounding tune, After a few seconds, the same bass tune slices through the waves of distorted guitar. Very effective.

"Apocalyptic Prophecies (The Sign Of Hades)"

"Alone Walkying"

A reworking of the song cut from same demo

"Crusade Of The Underworld Hordes"

Gets my vote for song of the year. Hands down, it is awesome. It opens with a short stint of classical guitar and literally erupts into a classic viking hymn.

"The Tale Of A Nocturnal Empress"

Creative use of tom-drums, by drummer Remi, as with some of the other tracks on this CD. Short 1-2 thumps, and crash cymbal work give the music a real tribal edge (NOT Sepultura-tribal).

"The Red Sun Mocks My Sadness"

A short flute/synth song, which provides a welcome break from the all-out aggression of the rest of the album.

"Pagan Prayer"

More epic viking metal, with superb clear folky vocals, courtesy of drummer, Remi

I found myself listening to this album over and over again. It shits on "...Again Shall Be", believe me. Its the first album to call itself "viking metal" without insulting the memory of "Hammerheart". Coming from me, the greatest Bathory fan of all time (hey, dispute it!), this is indeed high praise.

Email Fullmoon Productions for more info!