Our Dying World – Hymns Of Blinding Darkness
Neue Scheiben, Film- und BuchtippsNews 4. Juni 2022 Lydia Dr. Polwin-Plass
Für Fans von Children Of Bodom, Nightwish, Lamb Of God und Wintersun erscheint am 24. Juni 2022 das neue Album von Our Dying World . Wie die Liste der vergleichbaren Bands zeigt, ist „Hymns Of Blinding Darkness“ facettenreich und bunt an eingesetzten Stilmitteln.
In den letzten Jahren haben Our Dying World aus Los Angeles eine enorme Entwicklung durchgemacht. Vom thrashigen Death Metal ihrer Debüt-EP Expedition bis hin zu den symphonischen und melodischen Keyboard-lastigen Stilen von Bands wie Children Of Bodom, Nightwish oder Dimmu Borgir.
„Hymns of Blinding Darkness ist ein außergewöhnliches Album voller Melodien, persönlicher Erfahrung und dem Ziel, uns selbst an unsere äußersten Grenzen zu bringen. Textlich spricht es viele Lebensbereiche an: Trauer, Verlust, Hoffnungslosigkeit und Einsamkeit aber auch Triumph. Musikalisch versucht die Platte, sich mit ihren ausgefeilten Arrangements, eingängigen Hooks und schweren Melodien ein wenig abzuheben,“ so die Band über ihr Werk.
Der Song „Diary Of A War Dog“ basiert übrigens auf wahren Begebenheiten, die Toms Onkel Daniel J. Tierney, einem Veteranen der Air Force aus Vietnam, erzählte. Er schrieb ein Buch über seine Erinnerungen und Erfahrungen, das unter dem Titel „Diary Of A Talking War Dog“ veröffentlicht wurde. Nachdem Tom und Dan es gelesen hatten, beschlossen sie diese Erinnerungen in ein hörbares Format zu bringen.
Track by track explained by the band (LYRICALLY & MUSICALLY):
1. Ads Moriendi – Our intro track is the introduction of our maestro Graham Southern, who states his claim with some very dark and percussive orchestration dropping the listener into a hectic and almost frantically ominous tornado of strings and brass. There is a sense of urgency before throwing the listener into a triumphant wall of choirs announcing the return of a new and massive sound.
2. Everything We Know Is Gone – The opening keyboard and guitar melody have a strangely positive spin before vocalist David Ainsworth tears into a darkened riff with lyrics of the lies of a transcended being and lifestyle, once idolized, now known to be a fraud – deadly and unsatisfying. The chorus echoes with words of a past but current life, now lost in the knowledge of a newfound realization of truth. A ripping keyboard solo from Graham Southern follows up his ominous realization; everything we know is lost! The second verse tells of the darkened knowledge forming a reluctant but certain decision to turn the tide and strengthen the self to deal with the realities of this malignant situation to avoid any more pain. A breakdown followed but a sweeping solo from Ray Sanchez takes the grim mood and soars it to new heights. The third verse focuses on determinedly fixing the self before a strangely peaceful drop representing a breath before the final chorus; the subject has had his realization and is on the way to transformation. Ray and Graham take the song out with an incredible duet, only to foreshadow the rest of the record to come.
3. Under The Hunter’s Blade – The song starts with an almost folk-style string and bell set, giving the illusion of a mountainous and forest-like landscape before the guitars and drums come in with almost a tribal-esque beat. David tells the tale of a dethroned king of the mountain, now returning to his domain to reclaim his place. Ray and Graham interlude the song up to0 a beautiful segment to set the certainty of where the mood is going. The second verse introduces the prey of the hunter; his challenge to win his throne by the blood of the one who exiled him. The song then takes us down to a dark place where the hunter has his eyes locked on his adversary and the song devolves to blast beats and guttural vocals, representing the primitive essence of the kill; Ray’s shredding solo plays us through the moment of the death of his adversary and the realization of the king’s victory. The third verse describes the river of blood running from the neck wound to his hands and as the song reverts briefly to a calm instrumental, we can almost see the new king’s adrenaline fading, the majestic reclamation of his title, as the chorus once again hails his coming; he has returned to the mountain and has taken back his throne with a divine fire of life.
4. Survivor – The song starts with clips of a joyful choral arrangement of Tom’s high school choir before Jon Martin Crawford, who appeared before the New York Supreme Court in order to disclose child abuse from said school, echoes his final words of the testification. The song breaks into a heavy and slower riff clearly completely changing the mood. Tom tells the story of his younger self being left in the woods of upstate New York at a school filled with cultists. The song breaks down to an acoustic guitar, some clean singing, and strings and guitar. The song picks back up and David comes back in with his growls, conveying to the audience how lost and alone the young boy feels. He desperately prays to his deceased father to give him guidance. The second verse comes back to the clean singing and the lyrics portray the same boy, now released, back in the world feeling like there’s something wrong that no one will ever understand. The bridge switches to Tom’s screams, hearing that his fellow alumni are slowly dying off, and with everything he has in him, he dedicates this song to them. Ray’s solo comes in; the listener can almost feel the weeps and cries in his notes and bends. Tom says his final goodbyes to his fallen friends in the following section before David comes back in with desperation and emotion we haven’t yet heard in previous choruses before the song leads out on the notes it came in on.
5. Path Of The Nomad – The song comes in on a slightly quicker beat and is followed by choirs singing over the notes. Graham sweeps majestic strings over the guitars and drums as David describes a man traveling across the world; he is truly free from the world but at what cost? He has everything he owns in his hands, he is free from the trials of life but he has no family to warm him at night. We feel a natural and almost folk-metal style feel from the chord progressions before Graham comes in with a solo balancing his feel for melody and skill. The song takes a turn to a tremolo-picked riff that reminds us of something darker; never knowing the value of unity or knowing where you will sleep at night. The chorus picks up one last time, showcasing the beauty and sadness of life without tethering to worldly possessions and walking through life in solidarity.
6. Diary Of A War Dog – The band tells the musical story of Daniel J Tierney, an air force veteran of the Vietnam war, basing the song off of a book of his experiences, Diary Of A Talking War Dog. the song begins with a marching beat that sounds strangely ominous before dropping into a speedy thrash riff. David immediately screams of the horrors and trials of war, the consequences of the return, and the never-ending memories resulting. The chorus aggressively tells of the darkened mind space and the way the world looks after returning to life at home. The following guitar and keyboard lead carry us through the minefield of dark riffs and add some melody where previously there was little. David tells us of trying to bury the memories but with little success before the marching intro comes back in with more intensity. The song slows down, and Graham plays almost a peaceful piano segment, almost as a breath of fresh air after returning home…The final chorus brings us back to the place we always were and David reaffirms in the chorus that the memories of war and the subsequent feelings remained. The outro riffs are slower and feel reflective and thoughtful as they play us out; a heavy memory but scattered with the blight sounds of piano hovering above.
7. Valediction – Graham takes us into another world as his strings slowly build from a single violin to a whole section in what feels like a distant memory. A sudden 808 drop changes the tone to something a little more hesitant and fearful and the brass takes us to a darker and darker place until string and orchestral hits announce the final track on the record.
8. Veil Of The Reaper – The song starts immediately; pounding double bass and guitars flood the soundscape as the first verse comes in. David tells us of the process of dying. His eyes go dark, he’s pushed life too far and now he’s about to die. The breakdown signals the coming of the revelation with an almost alarm-like guitar lead. The second verse comes in with a layer of synths, telling of the silence that comes; the reaper stands before him reaching out his hand as if to say, “Come with me”. The pre-chorus comes in with a beautiful lead from Graham and we hear David tell the listener that the veil of death has been lifted. Gang vocals, almost referring to the voices are the dead, chant the lyrics with David as he realizes the anthem of all who pass from this life as the melodies of the chorus culminate in a catchy melodic chorus. Ray and Graham then show the insane skill and intensity of their musicianship with a unified and harmonized lead, that soon reverts to dueling solos; sweeps, arpeggios, and shredding showcase the uncompromising dedication of the two as they lead back into the chorus with a key change and a double chorus with the catchy melodies that make this song a staple of the album. The song leads out with a rough and heavy breakdown, forsaking orchestration and bringing back the heavy and grueling riffs that started Our Dying World in 2019.
Lydia Dr. Polwin-Plass
Promovierte Journalistin und Texterin, spezialisiert auf die Themen Kultur, Wirtschaft, Marketing, Vertrieb, Bildung, Karriere, Arbeitsmarkt, Naturheilkunde und Alternativmedizin. Mehr über Dr. Lydia Polwin-Plass auf ihrer Website: http://www.text-und-journalismus.de