Darkest Hour "Hidden Hands of a Sadist Nation" CD
[Victory]
I really got my hopes up for this record when I heard that Kris Norris was joining up as Darkest Hour's new second guitarist, because the guy's a total fucking shredder in the best possible way and he formerly shared an incredible melodic death metal band called Disinterment with current Darkest Hour drummer Ryan Parrish. I'm a tiny bit disappointed that this record basically sounds exactly like the last two Darkest Hour albums, which I'm assuming means that Norris either isn't doing that much writing or he's tailoring his riffs to fit more within the niche that Darkest Hour have started to carve out for themselves, but this is still a damn solid listen (and there are some noticeably more powerful harmonies and such herein that differ from the band's usual fare). And I will say, the playing is definitely tighter and more controlled here, as is the overall sound, and they seem to have upped the intensity as well. Whether or not that has to do with the lineup change or not, I can't say, but it's a welcome change. But like I said, if you've heard anything off of Darkest Hour's last two records, you'll have a good idea of what you're in for here: Melodic Swedish styled death metal with some vicious and original sounding vocal screams, and an emphasis on the slightly more involved alternate picked riffing of the genre rather than the stale tremolo picking patterns and whatnot. There are also some great slower rhythms and some nice interactions between the two guitars (rather than straightforward dual guitar harmonies). Some of the songs are a tad long for what they offer (most over five minutes, a couple over eight), though oddly the longest songs are far more effective than the tracks that rest somewhere in the middle, because there's always enough going on to warrant the lengthy running times (check the excellent clean guitars in "Accessible Losses" and the acoustic passages of "Veritas, Aeqitas"). The band recorded at Studio Fredman in Sweden with Fredrik Nordström, so they're definitely not fucking around. I like the production. There's not much I'd alter. The vocals sound awesome, the guitars are heavier and the distortion more harnessed than it has been in the past, the drums sound resonant and warm, etc. The bass isn't that discernible, and they could stand for a slight bit more clarity at times, but I'd say this is their most consistent and professional recording to date. And of course, being in Sweden, the band took advantage of their stay by lining up a slew of guest appearances. Tomas Lindberg (Skitsystem, ex-At the Gates, and a million more) throws some guest vocals in at the end of "The Sadist Nation", Anders Björler (The Haunted, ex-At the Gates) puts down a solo on "The Misinformation Age", while both Peter Wichers (Soilwork) and Marcus Sunesson (The Crown) thrown some solos into the massive 12-minute instrumental closer, "Veritas, Aeqitas" - definitely one of the most moving and surprising tracks on the entire record. I'm really not that into the layout on this one, I don't know. I like that the presentation is fairly clean and consistent, but it looks a bit bland compared to all of the band's other records. It's basically all tinted red or black and white photos of nighttime cityscapes and text. I really like the handwritten lyrics a lot, and the smaller text looks good, but the larger font is a bit bulky and typical, as opposed to the rather tasteful typefaces the band often employs. The lyrics are really good, though. I must give them a lot of credit in that department, because while tons of bands are playing this style right now (granted Darkest Hour has always had an edge), no other bands are at this level in their lyrical content. "It's the best blood money can buy, It's the best way to fund genocide, A violent missionary sect, Feeds a bullet for every word against, Salvation in a warhead, The patriot virus is being spread, The only antidote they give is to fear what's next, Prepackaged and advertised with a hymn, Singing anthems for the walking dead, Fear what's next." Fans of the band won't be let down by this one at all. It's growing on me with each listen. I hope that in the future they'll start incorporating more of the wider influences they flirt with on rare occasion here, and they should damn well start letting Norris throw some solos around (there's no sense wasting a five-minute track without a slick lead break when you've got a guitarist sitting there who could put most to shame), but this is the most promising material I've heard from the band yet. They get ever so slightly more focused and original and take a step out in front of the rest of the genre with each release. (7/10)
Running time - 56:02, Tracks: 9
[Notable tracks: The Sadist Nation, Marching to the Killing Rhythm, Accessible Losses, Veritas, Aeqitas]
Victory Records - http://www.victoryrecords.com

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