Artist: Dhampyr
Album: All the Dead Dears

Rel. Date: 2016-10-23
Genre: Black Metal
Label: War Against Yourself Records
Source: CD
Type: Album
Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo

Rhode Island's premier DSBM act proves once again
that doom and gloom sells: case in point - these
tracks offer up some of the most heavy-hitting,
despondent nocturnes in all of the genre. Through
miserable distorted guitars, pounding drums, and
inexplicably morose vocals, H.L. manages almost
singlehandedly (a new bassist was recruited for
the disc) to produce some of the finest suicidal
music I've yet heard. Tracks like "Les Paradis
Artificels" buzz in with a rather catchy tremolo
riff before turning into a crepuscular jangle
which, to its credit, manages to stake its
atmosphere as an all-instrumental piece. In fact,
H.L. even includes two acoustic tracks which,
while at first, may seem out of place; but as a
total package, the album runs smoothly and without
any sense of musical grudge. The drums are tightly
programmed, from the minimalistic "Methoxydine,"
to the chaotic but smart "Summom Bonum." Vocally,
H.L. employs a high-pitched yowl nearing the
sorrowful destinies of the castrato (maybe that's
why the bastard's so miserable!)
While somewhat of a wonder, for H.L. seems
otherwise very much capable of his instruments -
at least the one's we're hearing him play - he is
joined by bassist E., who by all accounts plays
with the former in the band Morthylla. The bass is
of important note as it sticks out clearly, like a
syringe in the vein! This is especially noticeable
in the closing denoument of the aforesaid "Les
Paradis Artificiels." While certainly not H.L.'s
first record -there have been PLENTY - "...Dead
Dears" shines a particular brilliance above many
of the others in terms of sheer musicianship and
scope. The songwriting is fantastic, and the
overall product seems to speak to the losers, the
brokenhearted, the damned - what more could you
ask in a black metal record?

The ever-proficient Dhampyr decided at some point
in 2013 to release a slew of releases seemingly
one after the other; ambient recordings, acoustic
records, drone, and this: “All the Dead Dears,” a
masterfully-crafted straight-to-the-point black
metal album without the depressive pretenses and
with not a little reference to drugs (the lyrics
have not been officially released, but judging by
previous releases, one can safely wager that the
lyrics on this album are not too far-removed from
previous recordings).ing the Lethalm’s penchant
for diversifying seemingly almost every album –
really, no two demos/albums/EPs sound too much
alike – “All the Dead Dears” comes full-throttle
with crushing guitars more suitable perhaps to an
early ’00 death metal band than a depressive black
metal band.
The riffs are surprisingly articulate, something
not seen in much of Lethalm’s previous output,
instead relying on technical rhythms and
dangerously-morose arpeggios to create a formula
of both hard-disciplined black metal and, too,
atmospheric resonance. Indeed, the ambient tracks
are ostensibly culled from a previous recording,
“Vanity / Senility,” and retitled, but somehow
still manage to fit perfectly into this blend of
chaos and beauty.
The drums are maybe too over-loud, which detracts
at times from the riffing, which is easy to
appreciate for its magisterial but still sinister
qualities. The vocals are not too much in the
foreground, preferring to take a seat behind the
storm of guitars and drums; as is usual with
Dhampyr, the vocals tend to be on the Burzum-ish
side with high-pitched yowls and horrifying
shrieks as though doomsday were just a
hedge-clipping away.
The bass, when given light, is well-played and
serves to intensify the guitars and, in some
places, perhaps most seen on the track “Palatine
Light,” come into its own and shepherd some really
fantastic lines. This album may well be Dhampyr’s
best effort so far, and one can only imagine where
the next full-length will take us.

1.  Anti-Oedipus                              4:52
2.  Les Paradis Artificiels                   4:55
3.  Watercolor of Grantchester Meadows        3:50
4.  Summum Bonum                              5:44
5.  Palatine Light                            4:03
6.  Amelanchier Alnifolia                     6:25
7.  Niaiserie                                 3:01
8.  Methoxydine                               5:55
9.  Dangling in the Tournefortia              5:26
44:11