Dawn of Ashes’ scourge still ran.
Signed to Metropolis Records, this is their eleventh album, Infecting the Scars, presented by American musician relocated to Denmark Kristof Bathory (vocals), eager to return to the roots of his project.
Intro – Made in Hell greets us with dark Industrial tones quickly complemented by ominous whispers, progressing steadily through this hazy universe until Infecting the Scars. A hint of melancholy appears thanks to keyboards, but tortured vocals soon remind us that the project is also driven by violence, creating a heady combo with dreamlike wisps that haunt us before disappearing to join Bone Saw. The band collaborates with the duo Alien Vampires, offering a mix with more insistent, oppressive melodies, perfectly in tune with the darkness that eventually joins Visceral Rage, where the rhythmics get a little more hectic, particularly on the percussion. In contrast to Hypertensive Crisis, which is far more martial and raw, this track also features a fast-paced, driving rhythm that confirms that Aggrotech influences are being put to good use. The beat slows down at times, but the approach is more playful for Coma Maker, the longest track on the album, which is also the most haunting, allowing Kristof‘s screams to evolve in an apocalyptic musical landscape. Masochism follows with more virulent patterns and percussion, and Faith Desecration brings back the anguish with sampled vocals, complemented by a catchy basis that soon has us moving to the beat. We continue with the mysterious Throne of Misanthropy, which turns out to be quite gentle, taking advantage of the darkness of the repetitive keyboard motifs to hypnotize us and regularly strike under the screams, but the band is already announcing the end of the album with Outro – Existential Despair, a final composition where the sampled voices and other machines captivate us one last time, but in a much more pessimistic and heavy manner.
Dawn of Ashes‘ return to their roots seemed obvious, and it’s a pleasure to rediscover the suffocating darkness of the band’s debut. Infecting the Scars is an unhealthy plague just waiting to spread, and I’d say the spread is just around the corner.
85/100